I translated (mostly google translate) an article by Roland Paulsen from a swedish newspaper. Roland Paulsen is a well known work critic in sweden.
Article:
Welcome back to work – here you get some good advices
Now that the holidays are over for most people, we can traditionally look forward to how science advises us to cope with the transition to paid work. The intent is very commendable. For many, working life seems like an absurdity after a few weeks in freedom, and at a time when mental health problems are the most common cause of sick leave, we should be vigilant about all types of depression.
Here at DN, Johan Mellnäs, work environment expert, advises readers to start soft. “Many people start working on a Monday out of sheer habit,” he says. “But there is nothing that says you have to do it. If, for example, you start on a Wednesday, it can feel more surmountable. ”
This is a common advice in the genre. Last year, the psychologist Sandra Guteklint suggested the same thing in the same newspaper (DN, 3 / 8-15). Guteklint, however, had a more conciliatory tone. According to Guteklint, it was “completely normal to have some negative thoughts”. “Do not be harsh with yourself if you have negative thoughts and find it difficult to get up in the morning,” she comforted. “It's hopefully just a transition phase.”
When she already in January felt compelled to convey good advice to get through the winter weeks of hell, this thing with the “transition phase” felt a little misleading. “Skip the demanding words 'should' and 'must'”, she then recommended. To say that one “wants” or “prefers” to perform all kinds of obligations is obviously better for the psyche (DN, 24/1).
The wisest advice was given by chief physician Kristina Glipse before last year's job start. Here, too, there was a calming approach. “Many people get a little anxious,” as she put it. She also thought that one should start on a Wednesday and also took the opportunity to direct a piece of advice directly to the middle class: “Book two long weekends as a reward during the autumn already now. Then the period until Christmas does not feel so long. ”
Most insightful, however, was her call for satisfaction: “Focus on having a job. Think about what the alternative would be ”(SvD, 3 / 8-15).
As a researcher, I am of course happy when science is helpful in this way, and even if this does not belong to my research area, I would like to make a contribution. Here are some tips to keep in mind for the next eleven months.
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First of all: focus really hard on the fact that it's fun to have a job. Be glad that you do not belong to the poor masses who are now to be locked into “simple jobs”. If you have a “simple job”, keep in mind that any job is better than no job at all. There are many who are worse off than you.
2.
Focus on the fact that the company you work for wants you well. It has given you a job and thus saved you from unemployment. Practice in gratitude.
3.
Focus on the fact that society is unchangeable. The workload will never decrease, the power structures will never change. Do not think about what the alternative would be. We have growth, maybe you will get a two percent salary increase this year. Focus on that.
4.
If you periodically doubt what you are doing, start the day by looking in the mirror and repeating the words “my job is in demand by the market, so it makes sense”. Affirm until you experience a tickling sensation in the right frontal lobe. Over time, the brain will give up.
5.
Spend all your free time preparing for the next Ironman. Spend the non-training time updating your feeds with training images. It will dissolve the contrast between leisure and work – so that everything becomes work.
6.
Focus on being hated by your family (working constantly is one of the easiest ways). Feel hurt when you succeed. Hate back. It will make the home an even more unbearable place and the job a relatively peaceful existence.
7.
Imagine that your life is infinite. Maybe you think you will waste another year on a job you would rather not have. Imagine this year as a tiny star in the Andromeda Galaxy. Or a grain of sand in the desert. Other visualizations can also work.
8.
If the negative thoughts do not want to give way: think that everyone else is wage slaves except you. You have seen through the system and are therefore above your brainwashed colleagues. Focus on the fact that your adjustment is ironic. You belong to the smart ones. You're not really here.