Many of these memes are likely to be painfully relatable, so we wanted to learn some tips to avoid an uncomfortable workplace and job. Misfortune is a lot less funny when it’s your misfortune, so best be prepared. We reached out to career coach and entrepreneur Mehar Sindhu Batra and she was kind enough to give some useful advice. First, we wanted to see if one could nip a bad job in the bud, so we asked about red flags on job descriptions like keywords and phrases to look out for. 

“Firstly, vague descriptions: The lack of clarity when it comes to the job description is truly worrisome. If a company is hiring a professional, be it for any job role, I’d expect a clear description so I am aware of what it is that’s expected of me as a prospective employee. Also, no mention of employee benefits. If they are unclear about this too- then it is apparent that there are fewer to no benefits for employees. This should be another cue to decide if this job is worth staying in.”

She also identified the notorious phrase “we are like family,” as something to be highly wary of. “In my personal experience, this phrase translates to lack of or complete absence thereof of workplace boundaries. It will only spill over to your personal or free time, leading to a lack of work-life balance. My advice - you deserve a healthy workplace with healthy boundaries.” As many unfortunately are aware, not all families are equal and many can be terribly unhealthy for a person's mental health. Nevertheless, some companies exploit this overused phrase, to the detriment of their workforce. 

We also wanted to know about signs a person should consider quitting a specific job. Mehar gave some helpful indicators to look out for. “I have a simple bullet list that will help you think whether you should consider changing your job or not. Nothing challenges you professionally. There’s nothing more that you could learn at your job. You don’t feel appreciated for the efforts you put in. You don’t get paid enough.” All in all, economic changes, personal growth, and new management all play a factor in shifting how well a workplace might suit a specific person.

Lastly, she left us with some parting advice for people considering a career change, but dealing with anxiety over it. “I understand that change might seem scary and very uncertain at times. But you ought to be valued for what you can bring to the table. Of course, I am not asking you to leave your job/career without a proper strategic plan, however, the sole motive was to make you think if you really require a career change - if so, then it is okay to feel that way while planning a proper way to transition into a new career.”

“Too many people are stuck at their jobs and they don’t even realize that. It’s sad how common “adjusting” at the workplace is. Of course, busy and stressful days are to be expected; but lack of appreciation, no credit, disrespect, and misconduct are not to be tolerated or normalized at the workplace. Please know your worth! Let’s get valued, and appreciated at the workplace while making sure we have adapted to remain relevant to the changing times.” Mehar Sindhu Batra is an accomplished career coach, mentor, and CEO, so if you want to learn more tips from her, you can find her on YouTube and LinkedIn. 

Work memes can even have spillover effects on the real world. Jennifer Aniston’s famous quitting scene in ‘Office Space’ ended up actually causing TGI Fridays to remove certain wardrobe requirements from their servers. Similarly, the famous red stapler actually caused Swingline to issue a real stapler in the shape and color depicted in the movie. Memes are becoming the popular culture of our time, so there will no doubt be more cases of things coming through the meme-to-reality pipeline.