Are you in the wrong job?

I happened to be browsing around the web this morning and came across this animation set to "Creep" by Radiohead. The creator of this piece writes that he was incredibly unhappy in his workplace and personal life when he made this. I watched it, I can see that.

A wise old man once told me (he was a professional recruiter by trade) that 80% of the professional workforce is in the wrong position today. I wonder if that really is the case, if it is, it really does say an awful lot about our own abilities to change our surroundings for the better. I have always been of the mind that our surrounds are an extension of our own attitudes and mindset. Have you ever heard someone say "he has an infectious sense of humor", "her confidence was reassuring"? If those are the sorts of comments that flow in your surroundings, I'll wager that you're happier there.

I recently read a book, The Tipping Point by Malcolm Gladwell in which he describes the process of viral change. He cited the example of the New York subway system that was cleaned up in the 90's. This was completed by the authorities taking a much tougher line with toll jumpers, vandals and graffiti artists(?). The result of this cleanup effort was that the general public took much more interest in keeping the environment cleaner and reportedly felt safer using the subway.

I guess the real question is, for the 80% who are in the wrong jobs, if you were to bring the "positive / confident / witty / gtd" attitude with you to the environment, would you still be in the wrong job? In a large number of cases, I doubt it.

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