Wanderings – What to do when you are no longer having fun?

I recently learned of the death of someone I used to volunteer with in a historical group some years ago – Roger.

Roger was the de-facto chair, treasurer, and keeper of the peace in this American-based group which was involved with railroad history. I dealt with memberships and distributing the magazine that the group produced.

In early 2018, I was tired of wearing many hats and my interest in this specific group was waning for many reasons. After some reflection, I called Roger – explaining what my issues were and how I didn’t know how best to resolve them. After a pause on the phone Roger asked, “Phil, if it’s no longer fun – why are you still doing this?”

The tone of the conversation changed immediately, and my feelings of letting the group down immediately vanished. I did have to stay on until a replacement could be found, but I was free to go when that was done. Roger’s question has stuck with me ever since. If it’s not fun, why are you doing this? It’s a great question – one that can lead to all sorts of directions and issues.

Work can be fun, but often there are parts of our jobs that we don’t like. Some people are fortunate to work in careers or fields where everything is sunshine and roses. Mark Twain once wrote, “Find a job you enjoy doing, and you will never have to work a day in your life.” Many are not so fortunate.

A guy I once knew, Rik, he was an artist and creating art was what was important. He worked in grocery stores stocking shelves, drove transport, and worked in a hobby shop. The job didn’t matter, it was just an income so he had a roof over his head and money to buy paint. Work was just the means to an end. Creating art was his life.

Many of us are lucky to have the things they enjoy cross in with their work. I am, but it’s not all roses. I’d prefer to take photos than having to chase people who won’t answer my questions. Even if that photo taking includes the sun and cursing the clouds having moved in.

I think Roger’s take of “it’s no longer fun – why are you still doing this” question is an appropriate response to the string of unfinished home projects. Planning and starting the project is new and fun for me – learning how to do something new hits all the right spots in my brain. My problem – which is also my wife’s problem – is I ask this question of it being fun just as the last 10 per cent of the project needs completing. Hence the unpainted trim and other finishing touches to the home projects. There was another thing I learned, or at least the lesson was reinforced by Roger – succession planning.

Roger was the de-facto leader of the aforementioned history group which was a loosely-coalesced group with a common interest. I left the group a year before Roger’s death, but still talk to some of the members. And they are dealing with an intertwined issue of a group and personal finances. Nothing nefarious, just poor or no succession planning. A series of headaches for those involved. While Roger’s death was unexpected, clearly no known plans had been actioned.

Last year, I took flack from some within a group I am very involved with for spending money on getting all the legal and organizational processes set up, codefied, and incorporated. I was told, “you don’t need to do this, we’ve been doing this the same way for 30 years – it’s fine.” Times have changed.

Dealing with lawyers, paperwork, signatures, and fees was a bit of a pain, but nothing ornerous. Once completed, everything is spelled out, set in stone, and I know that the organization will exist long after myself and the current group of organizers are no longer involved. That is peace of mind. Any doubts I had that I was doing the right thing were erased after listening to the hassles of the history group.

The takeaway here is that we need to enjoy what we do more. That can mean finding joy in a task you have to do. Or it means not doing a task or job anymore because it isn’t fun. I felt obligated to stay in a role, and that obligation really was not there. Perhaps, we all would feel better or a bit happier if we gave ourselves permission to cast off those perceptions, and just try to have fun.