Most people think jobs help them live life by providing them money to buy food, clothing, healthcare, etc., and that's certainly true, but if you really, really, REALLY hate your job, it might be killing you slowly, little by little, without you knowing it.

Why do people really hate their jobs?

Crappy boss, bad fit, don't see how their work affects the bottom line, treated like cogs in the machine, not conducive to interests or personality, etc.

And how does it kill them?

The obvious culprit here is stress. Consistently experiencing high stress floods the body with cortisol, lowers the immune response, leads to headaches, insomnia, fatigue, high blood pressure, which can then lead to heart disease, diabetes, obesity, etc.

That's bad enough but what people tend to miss are the unhealthy coping mechanisms that people turn to when dealing with that kind of high stress. Drinking, drugs, smoking, overeating, lashing out at others, etc.

That then contributes to exacerbating the initial symptoms of high stress and contributes to creating NEW problems such as divorce, isolation, depression, debt, etc.

It's a really horrible thing to see, especially if the person going through it doesn't understand the cycle he/she's going through and never gets off it.

It's a lot to be working against you, exponentially building over time.

And there's no energy to do anything about it, so around the wheel they go.

It's easy to say quit that job, but alas bills must be paid.

So there's various things a person can do to counteract the stress at the job by developing healthier coping options such as exercise, doing what they can to change the situation at work and if they can't do anything, then changing their perception about it, but even that can only go so far. That kind of perception is the kind that helps you endure. It's the kind of perception that's needed when you're in the "middle" of things. When you look back, you can see it as a good thing, but when you're going through it, it's very hard to perceive it that way.

If somebody is pummeling your face, it's hard to see that as a good thing in the moment, thinking that this will help toughen your face.

All this might help you get back to baseline but it's hard to get above that.

The obvious solution is to quit the job and find a better one but people don't know what kind of work to pursue and even if they do, they may be discouraged at the possibility of making less at it. Won't that cause more stress?

Not necessarily.

If you make less money, you can always utilize creativity to stretch your income, and that creativity will be enhanced since you're under less stress. You'll learn how to cook so you don't eat out as often, which helps you eat healthier, you'll look for more efficient ways of doing things, re-think what you buy, what you spend money on, but more importantly, you'll have more energy to do, to pursue other avenues outside of work instead of plopping in front of the couch, exhausted after a stressful day at work.

Relationships won't be harmed as much, you'll have a sparkle in your eye, the world will feel "open" once more. You'll feel like you have a new lease on life while you look for other roads of escape to take.

And when you find an avenue to pursue, that's when things start looking up because you know where to go now.

That's all people really want.

A clear destination that they're sure they want to head toward.

Instead of just looking around, not knowing where to "hike", you've found your destination.

You can chart the path and start walking.

That's what inspired me to write my second book, How to Finally Find What You Love to Do And Get Paid For Doing It: The Definitive Guide to Finding and Successfully Pursuing Your Passion - to provide the map on how to find that clear destination and know they can make money once they get there (the free bonus includes stories of those who did just that).

It just might be a book that saves lives.