Financial expert and author Sam gave Bored Panda an example how flexible work hours help prioritize what's most important to him in his life, his family."As writer and a dad of two kids, I try to work from 6am-8:30am, then from 9pm-10pm so I can spend more time with my kids. Working from 9-5 would be completely inefficient for my lifestyle. The same goes for many other households today," he said.

The mission and the people are what should inspire employees and keep their spirits up. So long as the financial side is taken care of, of course.

"Besides steady raises and promotions, an employee can get motivated if they remember their company's mission. For example, if you are working at a company whose mission is to alleviate child poverty, then you should be pumped to work every day!" Sam said.

"But if your company's mission is to keep users addicted to getting likes on social media, then you've got to work on building good relationships with your colleagues and managers. At the end of the day, people join people, not firms. Therefore, the stronger your relationships with your colleagues, the more you will enjoy work. And if that means having a ping pong tournament every Wednesday, so be it!"

According to financial expert Sam, managing your manager is key. "A harmonious work experience is all about setting and meeting appropriate expectations. Of course, you should try and be proactive and do more of what's asked of you. However, after several months of going above and beyond, you must bring up your good work and your expectations of a raise and a promotion during your semi-annual review," he said that being asked to work overtime should eventually be rewarded appropriately.

"Come year-end, most bosses forget what you've done during the first half of the year, let alone the first quarter of the year. Therefore, it's up to you to remind them of your accomplishments so you can get paid what you deserve," he stressed the fact that it's up to the employees themselves to remind their bosses of all the value they've added to the company recently.

"As a manager for a decade in investment banking, I've observed those employees who demonstrate their competence and ask for a raise and a promotion are more often the ones who ascend the fastest. Be professional, but also be bold. The labor market is tight! Otherwise, you should just find another job with better benefits," he said.

"Ultimately, the best thing you can do is to keep saving and investing aggressively. Your goal should be to generate enough passive investment income to cover your basic living expenses so you can do more of what you want. Working at a job because you enjoy it and not because you need the money is the best! It fulfills purpose and everybody needs a strong purpose to stay engaged," Sam explained that we should all strive to have the financial freedom to do what we love and what matters the most in our lives."

Meanwhile, if you're interested to read some more of Sam's insights, you can check out his articles about the average hours worked a week right here, as well as why the smartest countries in the world aren't the happiest right here.

‘9-5 Life’ is a social chain media brand with over 429k fans on Instagram, as well as nearly 6 million followers on Facebook. 

And they’re fabulous at showing the everyday absurdity, hilarity, and irony of working in the 21st century. With so many horrible managers, demotivated employees, and work-life cliches, it’s hard not to see the comical silver lining.

Surviving at work means so much more than just doing your daily tasks with a smile and a skip in your step. It requires you to know how to manage your managers, how to communicate expectations, and to know where to draw a line in the sand when boundaries end up being broken.

Workplace expert Lynn Taylor, the author of ‘Tame Your Terrible Office Tyrant’ and the CEO of the fashion brand ‘Behind the Buckle,’ recently explained to Bored Panda that if you’re ever considering quitting, you should think about how you’d like to be remembered and how this might affect your future prospects. At the same time, bullying at work shouldn’t be tolerated at all.

“The best way to quit is to think about how you want to be remembered. Every industry in a given city has a relatively small network of good people. We have all heard 'it’s a small world' and the '6 degrees of separation.' As satisfying as it feels to 'put a bad boss in their place' upon departure, leave those fantasies in your mind. You never want to burn your bridges or get a reputation for being a troublemaker. It will get around and hurt your career," the expert warned that every employee should carefully consider what strategies are the most useful for them and their future career.

"Your best bet is to thank your boss for the opportunity at the company and limit the number of negative comments you offer. It is unlikely to change behavior in a significant way. Be glad that you’ve decided to take the difficult step of moving on," Lynn told Bored Panda.

"Very few people want to engage in lawsuits against a bully boss, for example, unless they feel they it will most certainly be a win. When in doubt, of course, you should always consult an employment attorney. And while the idea can be tempting, you may want to place more of your energy in your next, better job—or career pursuit."

According to Lynn, it’s useful to think about how you approach communicating with your superiors. "Know your objective. If you’re acting defensively, that won’t move the needle on enhancing your relationship. Think about how you would react as the recipient," she noted.

One way to communicate work issues to your manager or boss might be to use so-called ‘positive bookeneds.’ "'I really enjoy my job, but there’s something that set me back a bit recently.' Enter: your beef. Wrap with: 'Thank you so much for taking the time to listen to me… I very much appreciate your efforts in trying to work better together,'" Lynn gave us an example of how this works.

She also urged employees to use positive and negative reinforcement when dealing with superiors, as well as using the ‘CALM’ approach: communicate clearly, anticipate problems, use levity and humor tactfully, and manage ‘up’ by being a problem solver who also speaks reason and sets boundaries.

Workplace expert Lynn also gave some advice on what to do if your boss wants you to work overtime, constantly.

“For example, if your supervisor says you need to do A, B, and C by tomorrow, diplomatically explain that it will hurt all projects to get them done the next day because (then explain very briefly what’s involved or the potential negative outcomes). Then explain the positives of an alternative approach, such as, 'If I focus on 'project A' today, we will likely land the Smith account.'"