Words of affirmation are big these days. “Don’t settle”, “Know your worth” and even “Hold out for the dream job” are just some of the mantras floating around career advice spaces. Affirmations are great. They help us get through the rough patches, remind us of what we deserve and keep us reaching. And yes, you should aim high. You should want work that excites you, challenges you and gives you space to grow. But this idea that the perfect job is out there, one where you’re constantly fulfilled, fairly paid, deeply valued, always learning, never tired, is doing more harm than good.

Some people spend years chasing it. Others take a decent role and slowly start to resent it when it doesn’t feel magical every day. The reality is: there is no dream job. At least not in the fantasy sense. There are just jobs. Some better than others. And how you show up in them matters just as much as what they offer.

Are there people working their dream jobs? The ones they used to fantasize about and are now saying to you “and you can too”? Yes. Here’s the thing though: most of them are still dealing with bad days, annoying meetings and stretch periods where nothing feels shiny. The job didn’t fix everything. They made it work. They showed up, did the hard parts, adjusted, grew into it. So maybe the point isn’t to keep hunting for some magical job that ticks every single box. Maybe it’s to build something good where you are and see where that takes you.

There’s a difference between being in the wrong job and being in a job that’s not perfect. But in a culture where people are told to only pursue “passion” or “purpose,” we end up feeling like any job that frustrates us, bores us, or asks too much of us must be wrong. Sometimes it is. But sometimes, it’s just work.

You don’t need a dream job. You need a job that aligns with your values, respects your time, challenges your mind and supports your growth. That’s enough. That’s more than enough actually. But to find it, or to turn a current job into something like that, you might have to adjust the fantasy.