The Jobs That Aren’t Yours

Metaphorical Narrative

Imagine a busy office where envelopes keep sliding under your door.
Each one stamped URGENT, each one written in a familiar hand. Some are from the old family of agreements — those inherited voices that say be responsible, don’t disappoint, prove yourself. Others are just stray jobs tossed in by passing strangers.

At first you rush to open every envelope, thinking they are all yours. But then you notice — most of these jobs don’t belong to you at all. They were never scheduled, never chosen. They are counterfeit assignments, smuggled in under the banner of obligation.

So you create a new rule: every time an envelope appears, you hold it up to the light and ask, “Who is this for?” If the answer isn’t clear, or if it’s only for the family of agreements and not for your calendar — you toss it straight into the bin.

And with every discarded envelope, your office grows quieter, your desk clearer, your freedom sharper.

Core Insight

Most unwanted thoughts are not random. They’re offspring of old agreements — a family of rules and expectations that trained you to take on invisible jobs.
The trick is not to fight them, but to question them. The moment you ask “Who is this for?”, the illusion cracks.

If the task isn’t scheduled by your conscious self, it doesn’t get your energy. That’s how executive function reclaims the desk — by refusing to process jobs that don’t belong.

Saturday Experiment

1. When a thought or impulse arrives today, pause.
2. Ask: “Who is this for?” If it’s for guilt, fear, or the old family of agreements — bin it.
3. Only keep what is clearly chosen and lives in your calendar.

Notice how much lighter your energy feels when the counterfeit jobs stop piling up.

Sunday Reflection

• How many “jobs” did the family of agreements try to slip under the door?
• In third person: “He/She noticed that…” what happened when they binned them?
• What kind of clarity or energy opened up when the office was kept clean?