Thursday, January 31, 2013

I Had an Automatic Positive Thought

In cognitive behavioral therapy, I learned about "Automatic Negative Thoughts" or "ANTs", as in "get rid of the ANTs." Examples of Automatic Negative Thoughts would be "If I go to the party, no one will talk to me, and I'll just want to leave," "No one will want to hire me," etc.

Well, the other day I was on the Internet, and came across some article saying that unemployed people over 50 are unemployable. And, guess what? I immediately thought that was bullshit. (After all, I'm over 50, and I got a job this year.)

I had an Automatic Positive Thought! How cool is that?

Monday, January 14, 2013

Fear of Being Evaluated

One of the major contributing factors to my ergophobia is my fear of being evaluated or judged. This includes not only performance evaluations and testing situations, but virtually any situation in which I feel that another person is assessing me in any way.

I feel very self-conscious when I perceive this to be happening. It also worries me. I often think the other person might have inaccurate ideas about me. Sometimes I also am concerned about the other person's accurate perceptions about me: that there may be things about me that could result in their poor treatment of me.

Sometimes I have a strong desire to just disappear or become invisible.

Friday, January 11, 2013

Dumb Interview/Screening Questions



Tonight I decided to take a look at some job ads on Craigslist just to see what might be out there. In a job for a cleaning company, the hiring manager requested that applicants send an email with answers to several questions.

The question that made me laugh out loud was, "What does a sense of urgency mean to you?"

To me, it means I need to find the bathroom fast!


Thursday, January 10, 2013

"Office jobs are......"

It's fun to play with Google. I sometimes enjoy entering random phrases or strings of words, just to see what comes up. Google is my oracle (oracle as in fortune teller- Oracle of Delphi- not the software company.)

A few minutes ago, I entered "office jobs are" into Google.

Google immediately translated this into the following suggestions:

         office jobs are boring
         office jobs are depressing
         office jobs are terrible
         office jobs are so boring

The first entries below these suggestions are:
               
  • How can people with boring office jobs enjoy them so much? - Yahoo ...

    answers.yahoo.com › All CategoriesArts & HumanitiesPhilosophyCached
    10 answers - Aug 6, 2011
    Top answer: Bahaha vanilla, sure. Because an office job is so hard to get. I think the reason is that these people aren't especially intelligent. They're not talented ...
  • I Hate Office Jobs

    www.lifeofjustin.com/office-jobs-the-tipping-point-124/Cached - Similar
    Apr 3, 2008 – Office Jobs: The Tipping Point ... But honestly, I feel like I am wasting my life away by sitting here bored all day thinking of things I would rather ...
  • Anyone else work a boring, dull office job? - Ultimate Metal Forum

    www.ultimatemetal.com › ... › Heavy Metal ForumsAndy SneapBarCached
    40 posts - 14 authors - Jun 17, 2009
    I do, and I feel like laying my head down and sleeping at the moment. The boredom and general stir-craziness that consume me on a daily ...



  • Weird...these are pretty much my thoughts on the subject. But does it have to be that way? I really think it doesn't.  I think this should change.







    Thursday, January 3, 2013

    "She Probably Thinks I'm a Dumb Clerical Person"

    As I've mentioned previously, I managed to get a part-time job. For the most part, this is a good thing. Does this mean I'm not ergophobic any more? Definitely not!

    In cognitive behavioral therapy, I have learned to watch for negative thoughts, especially negative self talk. When I find that I am engaging in negative self talk, I try to redirect my thoughts to a more positive outlook.

    For example, I was thinking about a new co-worker, and I thought, "She probably thinks I'm a dumb clerical person." Do I have any real evidence of this? No, I don't. If she's not seeking me out, maybe she's busy, or perhaps she's shy herself.