🔹Ven Pomnyun’s Dharma Q&A

2021/11/14

🔹Question:  Hello, Sunim Thank you so much for taking thetime to talk to us. I have a similar question. I am an addiction counselor for a nonprofit. I have been doing this for about a year and a half since I graduated college. Your talk, last week, really helped me with feelings of jealousy over salary. And you helped me realize that this is still the job that I want to do. However, I wanted to ask a follow up question about free time, energy, and balance in my life. I actually really enjoy the core parts of my job which is working directly with other people who are in need of support. I also really like my team which has made a big difference from the other social service jobs that I did before. I also feel like my performance is okay. However, the job is often still hard because of how it impacts my sense of freedom and because of how long the paperwork and other bureaucratic elements take. I feel like I am always working more than the 40 hours a week that I am paid for just to not fall behind. Organizational skills have always been one of my weak points, but all of my coworkers also spend more time doing paperwork than actually helping clients. I don't know how I can ever view this aspect of the job as play. Even though I love my job, it is so hard how far away I feel like I am from financial freedom. I have still been living with my parents since last year while I am saving money. Sometimes, I still get jealous of those who have more freedom to relax, travel, and grow since my job makes me so tired. I feel like I don't have enough time to take care of myself, reading, exercising, or pursuing my other interests, let alone improve at my job and my career. I don't know how I can ever start a family eventually like this. Sometimes, it makes me feel very tired and depressed. Sometimes, it gives me nightmares. I don't know how to work less or feel like I'm working less without feeling like I might be laid off, or I won't be growing fast enough in my career as expected. In the past, when I have had more free time, I've been able to stay very happy by exercising and pursuing my own hobbies and interests.However, even though this job is a passion of mine, and the core aspects feel like play, sometimes it feels like it is too demanding staying on top of all of the liability stuff for the city, the state, and the federal government and all of the paperwork. Sometimes, it feels too demanding for me to stay energized and live well.

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