Why You (Sometimes) Have to Accept a Job You’re Just Not That Into

We all want to find the career that will make us happy and provide for our needs. You know, the one that we are excited to wake up to and spend our day doing and the one that has so many good things, we are willing to overlook the bad.

And sometimes, that means taking a job you’re just not that into.

If you’ve already found that one thing, the career that you just know you were made for – you are lucky. But for the rest of us, miles and miles of uncharted waters still lie ahead.

After nearly a full year after finishing their undergraduate degrees, many of our friends are still unemployed and constantly looking for work.

Filling out job applications has become second nature. How long do you have to persist for when even entry-level positions require “minimum two years experience?”

For us, this raises the question, “But what in the world am I supposed to do in the meantime?”

Looking for jobs can be a full-time job – applying, writing cover letters and personal statements, updating your resume, running around to interviews and waiting to hear back.

But wait! A job offer! In your inbox!

But oh – not for the place you were hoping for. After you go through every excuse you could possibly have about why you really don’t need to take that job you’re just not that into, consider these points.

Why You (Sometimes) Have to Accept a Job You’re Just Not That Into

1. Working keeps you grounded and gives you networking opportunities.

Yeah, sitting at home in your parents’ house or your apartment combing through website after website to find positions that you are qualified for gets boring.

You aren’t making any progress after months and months of attempts at securing a place in your industry of choice. But maybe, just maybe, you’ve been offered a job somewhere else doing something that’s not even in your top ten on your “this is what I want to do” list.

Having a job, any job, to go to everyday will give you a purpose. And you never know – your future boss just might know someone who knows someone. That is what it’s all about, after all.

2. Making money.

Now there’s some motivation! If you can afford to not have a “real job” and list searching for employment as your part-time job between watching every television series ever on Netflix, have at it.

But if you have dreams of traveling abroad, buying a car or even a house, this is a good time to be able to make money you wouldn’t be if you were to just sit at home, filling out applications and occasionally going to an interview.

You might have to take a less than ideal position, but just remember: it’s only a step in fulfilling your dreams.

3. A chance to develop skill sets.

You never really know what a position might require until you’re in it. That retail job you’ve been offered might just give you some really great customer service experience or a chance to work on a team to accomplish something really fantastic.

These little things could be great resume boosters.

You might even be able to get an awesome letter of recommendation from a co-worker who is a similar situation.

Even working as a waitress in a high-class restaurant can expose you to important people or show how fabulous you are under pressure.

4. Don’t consider it “settling.”

Just because you took a position you probably could have gotten before you went to college, doesn’t mean it was all for nothing.

When you look back when we are all thirty-somethings, you’ll realize how insignificant that job you took for a few months was in the grand scheme of things.

Who knows, maybe you’ll meet your future spouse at that job. I suppose that makes it significant after all.

This is by no means encouraging you to just throw in the towel. Or to give up on searching for your dream job. But sometimes, its necessary to take a step back and visualize how things are going to affect you in the long run.

Don’t be afraid to take chances and fall off the path sometimes. In time, you’ll end up where you need to be.

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