Irritable at Work

[AmeliePoulain]

I'll be 28 years old soon and I've been working at a place for 3 years now. Out of everyone in my department, I've been there the longest, and I'm in school obtaining a second degree. I plan to stay at my current job for another 3 years and finally move into the desired career once I obtain certification. In the meantime, I want to stick it out at this current job even though I don't have any passion in it.

 

The thing is, nobody in my department has a passion for the work. We are all just here for a paycheck, and we can all be lazy in some way and I think we can tell we are over this job, but the pay is too good as we are comfortable. However, I work with a bunch of immature adults, including myself. We're all very unprofessional and for the most part we get along. I would consider two of the girls there my closest friends, and a few I may hang out with outside of work, and the others I really don't care about.

 

I don't have a filter when I talk. My friends appreciate that side of me. I say what's on my mind, and I know that honesty won't win me a lot of friends, but I have a hard time being fake to people. I don't like trivial or artificial conversations but sometimes I engage in it when I'm not busy, but I definitely voice my opinions. Anyway, I'm starting to have little patience and getting annoyed at the topic of conversations with co-workers. One guy in particular turns every story into himself and carries around a lot of ego. I don't think too many people like him, but he's very manipulative. Sometimes he is rude, and I give him talk back, so most of the time we are just fake nice to each other to get the work done. It's starting to bug me as I always see right through him.

 

I would say I'm not as social as most of the people in my office, but my close friends know me enough not to take it personally. Others don't get my sense of humor or they take me too seriously and don't understand that I was just being ironic or sarcastic. I guess it's wearing me down that I have to work with a couple of guys that are so selfish and kiss the bosses a** and I have a hard time shutting me mouth if they were to say anything rude to me. I'm reserved for the most part, so I let out a few remarks when I hear the guy say something snarky to me and I give it right back. But all in all, I don't like it. It's nothing to go to HR about as we both dig at each other, but everyone else is too oblivious or passive to say anything to him.

 

I suppose I am just here to vent. I know that people will probably tell me to either get another job or shut my mouth and deal with it. I do want to stay here for a few more years as I need this specific job as it works perfectly with my class schedules and the pay is awesome. How do I not let people get to me? I just can't handle when people go on and on and talk about themselves and have shallow conversations all day, it's exhausting to pretend that I'm remotely interested. It's gotten to that point where we've all worked with each other for so long that talking crap about each other and everyone is the norm.

[StrongLass]

It doesn't really sound like any of you can claim the higher ground here