So, this is the corporate world

Since I was a kid, I dreamt of ending up in an office job. I felt chills every time I saw a movie scene of someone getting up in the morning, humming in a 15-second elevator ride, then gracefully walking across cubicles. I’d daydream that someday, I’d be sitting on a similar chair running my hands through my desk, and refilling my cup of coffee.

The thought of being part of a bustling corporate environment gave me that movie-like life.

But I’m afraid it isn’t the best movie I thought it would be.

When I decided to move to Davao City from rural life, I still had a lot of sorting to do.

I didn’t waste a day on the calendar to look for a job and get my first job interview—not a college mock-up but an actual talking person. Every tick of the clock in the applicants’ room felt like my life was about to maneuver down the adult lane of living.

The excitement was palpable, and I could hardly wait to finally walk in there with my best foot forward.

I imagined a place where dreams came true, hard work was rewarded, and I could grow personally and professionally.

But as soon as I walked through those office doors, I couldn’t even hold myself steady. I didn’t understand it then. It couldn’t be the air, they had the best air-conditioning I’ve ever seen. I let it slip. Maybe I was just excited. This is going to be my life, after all.

The corporate world, I soon discovered, is not the dreamland I had envisioned. My first few days were filled with meetings, training, and introductions. Everything seemed fine on the surface, but it didn’t take long for the cracks to show. As I settled into my cubicle, I started noticing the people around me. They were courteous and professional, but there was an unmistakable air of resignation about them.

Gone were the dreams they once had. The sparkle in their eyes had dimmed, replaced by a tired, weary look. It was as if their lives had been drained of color, leaving behind only shades of gray. Day in and day out, they were stuck within the four corners of their cubicles, trapped in a monotonous routine that seemed to lead nowhere.

For some, mornings began as the sun was setting. Everything here was off the clock.

The transition I had anticipated was nowhere in my life script. Instead, I felt like this was the office space of a 1990s film.

People had to race with time with piles of workload. And the hardest pill to swallow? That annoying feeling of finishing off the towering files and knowing that there were more on their way to your desk. I couldn’t help but feel a pang of sadness for these people. For myself.

Had they been once like me? Full of hope and ambition, but the corporate grind had worn them down. Their lives revolved around deadlines, targets, and performance reviews, leaving little room for getaways or proper sleep. We didn’t even have the drive to stand up from our corners and swerve to the coffee machine for a refill, knowing we needed to meet deadlines and run after quotas. If this was driving on the road—I would be penalized for speeding.

It was really disheartening to see so many dreams stifled by the relentless demands of the corporate machine.

As I sit in my cubicle secretly writing this, together with the draft of my resignation letter, I realize that the corporate world is not for everybody. It isn’t the place of endless possibilities I had imagined. It is not waking up, making some breakfast, and going to work with headphones on, humming in the elevator. It’s rushing in the morning, a few toothbrush strokes, and running late because you didn’t get enough sleep. It felt like a trap, a place where creativity and individuality were sacrificed for efficiency and conformity. The dream logs I had once written down the night I got in the office were replaced by sticky notes and written codes.

My experience in the corporate world has been a wake-up call.

It has shown me that sometimes, in some places, there were people stuck on the same chairs and in the same building for years because they had nowhere else to go. And that the path we choose may not always lead to happiness. The corporate world, with all its promises, can often be a cold and unforgiving place. A maze.

For those who still dream of an office job, I urge you to look beyond the surface and prepare yourself for the reality that lies beneath. You might say, maybe I am just in the wrong company, in the worst account, picked up the black cat, took the wrong turn. But you know what I’m damn sure of? Every day after that interview, after my week of enjoying my refills, after looking people in the eye, I always end up waking on the wrong side of the bed.

The corporate world is not for everyone and it’s important to find a path that truly fulfills you. Don’t let the warmth of a dream lure you into a place that might leave you feeling cold and empty.

In the end, we all deserve to chase our dreams and find happiness, but sometimes, the route seems confusing and it may lead us to nowhere.

I couldn’t do anything about where I am now, but I have come to terms with myself. Have I become one of them?

So, this is the corporate world.

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Dariel John Mero, 20, is an aspiring writer from Pagadian City.