Living The Dream

I have a dream that my four little children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin, but by the content of their character.
Martin Luther King, Jr.

We as a race and a nation have been made to believe that ones life is a failier should we not 'live the dream'. Success is judged by money and wealth rather than health and happiness. As i am approaching my 28th Birthday i am struggling to find the happy medium between 'living the dream' (well my dream) and living. Job satisfaction is highly important and nobody should wake up and think... I'm just 'going through the motions' you should get excited by your job. You should have fun and laugh during your working day and you must must must be able to be yourself. Don't be your job! Just because you work in in a high powered office with Alan Sugar doesn't mean you have to be so damn professional you forget how to me human. Emotions are important to living. If you think something is funny, then laugh. If someone is upsetting you, especially your boss let them know that. If you are in need of help from being buried in work then ask for it. But in order to 'climb the corporate ladder' and  eventually be able to 'live the dream' you have to act like a machine. You don't show emotions as it would seem to be 'unprofessional' and involving your personal life.

I once worked in a finance company, where we would take payments for insurance finance. I can remember having a woman on the phone telling me about how her son had run away after her husband had committed suicide and he hadn't paid his bills. This mother loved her son so much she didn't want him to lose his insurance and so paid his bill but she couldn't afford the £40 charges he had incurred. Me being me, consulted my manager asking if we could wave the charges. I was then given the all clear to remove £20 of them for her. However when i went back to the call she had gone. I later heard another adviser talking to the same woman, and just saying no madame i cant wave the fees. Its unfortunate about your son but....

Where is the humanity. This woman was opening her heart  and being honest about her situation. We had the power to help her and yet chose not too. Said customer relations adviser was later promoted to head of department for his 'statistical success' rather than his customer service. This is the world. The rules must be followed.

Another thing is illness. If i am ill and need to rest i will, but i do not like to wallow in it as it can be unhealthy. Its important to motivate ones self and so i go for short walks to the local shop or something. Or if i start to feel better i will go out on a longer walk or a drive with my partner to get some fresh air. Believe me it makes one happy and feel so much more alive and well. However if you are off work that day, it is a big no no to be seen by anyone you work with  as it is impossible to get better half way though and evening. This in the corprate world means you are lying about said illness and must be punished. The same goes for long term absences from work. I am a migraine sufferer and during my first group of attacks i had up to 3 weeks on and off of work. I provided medical certificates from the doctors to say i was having them and that they were under investigation. However over the 3 months that i was suffering i ended up with a verbal warning,a written warning and a deduction from my Christmas bonus and pay rise... how is this fair. So now i had a new condition to deal with and the knowledge that feeling crappy allot of the time and to deal with the fact that this illness will also effect my pay and possibly loss me my job. Would this have been the same if i were pregnant and having morning sickness? or diagnosed with something more serious? who knows the bottom line is success and climbing the corporate ladder means losing your humanity!

At present i am working in an office where i am relaxed and enjoy my job and life in general is great. I am in a happy an loving relationship, and i have started to look to the future again and have drive to move out and 'live the dream' however it is only part time and money is becoming an issue. My options are to get a second part time job to make up the extra money or get a full time job and leave the one i am settled and happy in.... oh an also forget my acting career for a few years. Logically, i should opt for the full time work but the area i will want to work in will mean traveling to London daily and so being tired stressed a lot of the time and also taking my time away from my boyfriend, family and friends. Then there is the fact that my job is not as  giving as i would like. Acting and the entertainment industry is there now to feed egos... and my heart is bigger than my ego. I would and always have known i  would rather have love, a family and live comfortably rather than being a famous actress and living the dream. I mean whats the point in success if there is no one to share it with? But here lies my frustration...what can i do to feed my need to help as well as my longing for job satisfaction. Do i stay where i am to keep the interest and work part time for a charity or something or do i retrain as a social worker or a councilor or should i simply just climb that corporate ladder and become another daytime drone just so i get that nice pay packet to help provide for my future?!!!

Living the dream isn't easy as its all about putting you heart over you ego. You'll have the what if factor but you'll be happy and have a lot to show for it in the close friends you have made and the family you have gained and the house you have lived and laughed in. Now That's real success :) xxxxxxxx