Office Space & Burnout: Why Corporate Culture Feels Soul-Sucking

In this episode of Wicked Psychotherapists, Erin and Tanya dive deep into the cult classic Office Space and unpack the very real mental health themes hiding in plain sight—burnout, toxic work environments, corporate dysfunction, and the pressure to “find meaning” in your 9 to 5.

Whether you've ever hated your job, dreamed about smashing your office printer, or questioned your career path while stuck in traffic—this one’s for you.

We explore how identity, purpose, and work culture collide, reflect on clients (and our own experiences) with burnout, and laugh through the absurdity of meaningless meetings and flair-covered uniforms. 

Plus, we ask: If your bills were covered, what would you actually want to do for work?

Spoiler: the answers include therapy centers, art studios, rescue dogs, and a whole lotta travel.

Remember... Stay Wicked and Keep Your Mind Well!

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Transcript

0:31

Hey guys, it's Tanya. Hi, it's Erin and welcome to Wicked Psychotherapist.

tanya: 0:36

this week we have another, movie that we want to discuss that has a lot of mental health themes in the workplace. So we are discussing one of the, the cult classics office space, which, came out in 1999. Apparently, I noticed this from the, you know, the, i, I rewatched this again. But it said that, in the, you know, on, if you watch it on Prime, it'll have the little fax trivia or whatever next to it. yeah, but I did see that this office space did not do well in theaters, but gained a cult following on video. it's been a cult favorite ever since. I didn't watch it when it first came out. I didn't watch it until years later, but I remember people quoting it and being like, what the heck? I know what they're saying, but It was, always kind of something in the zeitgeist. It became a theme of corporate culture, rallying, rebelling against it, and looking at the funny points and the ridiculousness of it. Right, right. Yeah. And so it's definitely got a lot of mental health themes, but also just, a lot of funny characters and scenarios that describe corporate culture and the flattened work culture there. Dysfunction that goes on. so we have, our main character, Peter, who is seemingly kind of trudging along in this, software tech company in a tech. And he's, you know, kind of. I think is, is writing code. trying to update it because it's right before the year 2000 If you don't know this computers, what the Y 2K, scare where, you know, basically that computers could not read that it was the year. 2000. everything had to be updated or else they thought like the world was just gonna shut down at that point. Yeah, it was huge panic. If you weren't alive during that time, or if you were and you remember it, you'll know.

Erin: 2:19

Yeah, it was like everyone was holding their breath until I'm like, okay, what's gonna happen? And then it

tanya: 2:24

yeah, that was really funny. But, yeah, so he updates a lot of, the backlog for that. He's like, does some code. I think he's a software engineer, right?

Erin: 2:32

Well, he's in charge of the TPS reports. I think he's more like, not accounting. He does something'cause his friends are more software and, programming. I think he's like analytics or something. he kind of looks at the reports and his job is to analyze everything and to fix it.

tanya: 2:48

I wasn't quite clear what that was, just because I'm not quite clear with tech in general, He doesn't seem, he seems kind of, you know, a little bit like dead end in his soul in this job. He's just kind of, Dreading going to work. He just kind of feels like it's the same thing. You kind of get the sense, he's just like, man, there's gotta be more to this. and he's talking to other people, like his neighbor and kind of just like trying to gauge is this, is this what you get from life? Like, am I, am I normal for not liking this? And he's really struggling with that. Which he's, he's probably like, I don't know, mid, mid late twenties or something. yeah, because

Erin: 3:24

I remember they like him and his two friends, Michael Bolton and the other friend, I can't remember his name, but they were talking about like, oh yeah, yeah, if I'm here for, you know, so long, you know, like, oh yeah, I can't believe, you know, some people are, you know, are. We're are here in their fif, they're 50 years old, can you imagine being here till you're 50? So they, they, you know, then, you know, Tom was like, yeah, that would be great. Then I'd be here for, like 20 years or something. they must have been like mid twenties or something.'cause they're, you know, 50 just seemed like so, so far for that.

tanya: 3:56

Yeah. They were definitely fairly young. it seems like Peter had been there for a good amount, for his age, probably like six seven, eight years, something like that. And so he's probably in his late twenties, but he's struggling with finding his own identity, feeling like, is this what I want out of life? Because we spend so much time at work, What do we get from it? he's realizing this corporate environment is pretty empty you get to wear a Hawaiian shirt have a piece of cake here and there and have useless meetings your 10,000 bosses will harass you, if you don't use the correct cover sheet for your TPS reports. Right. And won't keep acting like you're struggling just because you forgot to add on the new cover sheet.

Erin: 4:32

Yeah. and that was something that the Bobs, the two bobs, Were like, what? You have eight bosses? So that's when they were thinking oh, Peter really understands, he's so knowledgeable with his angst.

tanya: 4:44

Yeah, the consultants that come in to, tighten up the ship, it really is painting a picture of a corporate environment and how people have to bend and break themselves to fit into this and this being kind of normal, You know, you work yourself up a corporate ladder, get a good job, get paid retire with a good amount of money. And that's supposed to be a good life. maybe that is to some people, but Peter was finding this was not satisfying him. He just was not feeling good about this, he didn't want this to be his life. Yeah. And he keeps asking people the question of coworkers. When we were in high school, the guidance counselor asked you, what would you do if you had$2 million? What would you do? And he is like, I just said like nothing. I would just relax. Which is like, yeah, that's totally, I think what. A lot of people would do, maybe they would do some hobbies after a while, but I think they just want to get out of the rat race, you know? Just scrambling. But yeah, there's a lot of, looking around at the characters, there's a lot of burnout and stress That we can see.

Erin: 5:44

even the opening credits, like when they have everybody driving to work. It's very evident on how like, you know, you see Peter going in and outta traffic and so frustrated and you see Michael something like a minute. Yeah. And Michael Bolton listening to gangster rap. And Tom is so angry, screaming in the car. So they all have like these ways that they're getting out their rage. To get into this, to their cubicle life, you know? So it's like, okay, well I'm so angry going into this place. they must have some form of burnout,

tanya: 6:19

to me it made sense. that pace every day, how could you not? It's just not really human. that's the whole thing about this corporate culture is it's, it's really not. It's souls sucking, you know? And I know that, that's, that's my opinion. I'm not saying if anybody else, if they have, you know, corporate jobs and they love it, but like from this point of view, it appears to be very soul sucking to all these characters. Yeah. they're already kind of building up and it's like, they've only got so much in what they can give, and their battery's already half drained by the time they get to work. Being in traffic and fighting people and just going an inch. Every five seconds, kind of moving up It really is just, well, when I saw that it made my stomach turn. I was like, that makes me sick. Because, you know, our commutes are much better. We just, walk to the next room.

Erin: 7:02

I would have to drive from where I am. I would drive like 50 minutes to work at my old job. I wasn't a therapist in the job, but I shared I was in a cubicle, but I was a, it was an office, like, it was like a small office that they made for three people in cubicles. So all three of us were in this really small office together. It was like a nightmare because. Three different personalities, three different positions. One person's talking loud, one person's not working at all, but keeps getting promoted. And then like, you know, so you see that and it's just really difficult. And we then changed, moved buildings and stuff, and then they did the open concept for all the cubicles. So kind of very similar to the office space that you know, I worked nonprofit, but I still, it was kind of a, that that job did try to have corporate ish, like they tried to have kind of that way s of being in it. And it can be very. Difficult to navigate.

tanya: 8:01

I can't say I've ever, I've, I've maybe had a couple of jobs that maybe have had sort of, or tried to have that culture, but I've never worked in an environment that's had that type of corporate, Job I do know a lot of people in those jobs, and that is, to this day, even accurate. Maybe just with some updated Yeah. Things. Maybe not to the extreme, but there was a lot of examples that I was laughing at. I was like, wow. That's exactly like the thing with having so many different bosses, you don't even know who you report to. People moving up that maybe aren't even doing the work. They're maybe just in good with people. Or they're just good at selling. What they're doing to whoever needs to hear that.

Erin: 8:39

I had that you know, it's Like the Peter principle? where people get promoted because they're doing good in one position, but that doesn't necessarily mean they're gonna do great in their other, but they people just, okay, well you're doing somewhat good here. Let's promote you and give you all these employees and you'll do a crappy job. Probably'cause you weren't trained, but here you getting rewarded for this

tanya: 9:00

a lot of times, people would say instead of. Letting go or firing, they just move people off. So it's almost like you get rewarded, because they don't want to fire people. instead they move them up the chain. Or when they have like all these mass layoffs, they'll lay'em off and. yeah. You know, kind of not really do it very ruthlessly.

Erin: 9:19

And I've also seen too, like where someone like you have that one employee who's not doing anything, but also is kind of annoying and they don't want it to be their problem, so they will transfer them to another department or another team. So it's like, all right, so I don't have to supervise or manage this person any longer. But they've been here for a long time. Yeah, I've seen that at companies I've worked at.

tanya: 9:41

Yeah, for sure. It definitely is I think, so funny because when I watched this, I think I've only seen this once or twice before, but I rewatched it yesterday and I had a different lens on it, a different perspective from after talking to people that I've known that have worked in these jobs for years and years, it kind of all clicked. I think I didn't fully appreciate it, as much. And I, was like, that's so funny. Yeah. I remember them saying this. I remember them saying that. Yeah, they always say this. It was just really funny. the accuracy of it, even though this was made 25, 26 years ago, it's still kind of, you know, I guess the structure of it

Erin: 10:17

it's interesting too, like all the different. Nuances when Peter Fritz gets in his office and he is just goofing around or not really doing anything, all he's focused on is the welcome to Bababa. the redhead receptionist, like how everyone else is probably able to drone her out. They're able to just ignore him. So he's just focused on that. Then he's like, oh my god, Milton's little radio is driving me insane. So then he is like, Milton. lower the radio

tanya: 10:42

can use the radio.

Erin: 10:43

Yeah. But it's like, Peter's not even trying to pretend like he's working and then the boss, you know, there are different nuances. when I first watched it, like in 99 or 2000 I definitely didn't have the job I was talking about, you know, like, so I didn't really have any real experience in corporate world, just other, you know, like other jobs. So it is a different lens. I watched it last night too, so it was kind of like, okay, this feels a little different.

tanya: 11:07

could definitely appreciate it more or as, as a, yeah, and, and, yeah. Yeah. As an adult, I guess. Yeah, for sure. And I think there really was, a before and after with the Peter character because when he goes to work things out with his girlfriend, at this hypnotherapist, it's almost like he is on the verge of like, I need some answer to this. And the hypnotherapy really gets him into. This state of like, why should I care? Like why should I waste energy on this? And it taps into something of like, it's not that I don't care, it's that I don't care for this path. And then he starts going rogue and walks in the next day, takes off the door, handles that, give him electric, static and rips down the sign guts. A fish like doesn't show up for, you know, until whatever he wants knocks down the cubicle. And so he kind of. It's almost like he taps into this, like, wait, I've been on the edge of this. And then hypnotherapy, which I, I mean, I don't have much experience in, I don't know if that can work to that degree. I don't work with it. I don't mess with it. but for this movie, that's what kind of pushed him to tap into, to say, well, and also I wonder, this is what I want.

Erin: 12:16

Who were the other people? Because I know his girlfriend was next to him. Who was the other couple? I think it was a group,

tanya: 12:21

like a hypnotherapy group. Couples group. Okay. Because I was wondering why are they there too,

Erin: 12:26

Okay. I was thinking that it was just a, Thing with Peter and his girlfriend. So I was like, that's really weird that there's another couple. So I wasn't really sure what that was about.

tanya: 12:34

Yeah. I know, you know, nineties hypnotherapy and eighties stuff, that was kind of all the rage But I know you and I don't really mess with that. I just don't feel like I know enough and I don't practice that. But for whatever reason, he was able to tap into that. I mean, just kind of like, kind of set about and saying like, this is what I want and I'm just gonna go for it, whatever the consequences are, and when the consultants come in to lay people off, they're highly impressed with his attitude The Bobs, they're just like he's executive material because he has confidence I don't care about this. So they take that as oh, he's not challenged, you know?

Erin: 13:04

and just even how he's talking to them. the Bobs, seem to right away like him, and he wasn't trying to be phony. even his friends, like the Michael Bolton person. He is like, I hate Michael Bolton. But then for the interview he is like, oh yeah. He's good because one of the Bobs is obsessed with, but maybe if he would've genuinely been like, Ugh, no, I don't like him, or explained why it's frustrating having the same name, maybe they would've been like, okay, we're not gonna lay you off.

tanya: 13:32

I do think Peter in real life would've been laid off. he probably would've,

Erin: 13:35

he probably would've been fired. Or something because he no call, no show for two days. even if it was forced overtime, he still was expected to show up.

tanya: 13:44

I think it was demonstrating the point of once you start to take a hold of your destiny the path will form that feeling like you take a hold of it and he was doing that then he. realizes that his two friends, Samir and Michael Bolton are getting laid off, Michael Bolton has had this fraudulent virus that would like, take money from the company. And he is like, let's just do it. Let's just, you know, maybe this is the way.

Erin: 14:08

have money taken.

tanya: 14:09

Yeah, it, comes out quicker than he thought, which must have been really scary. And then there's also, along the way, these other characters I really wanted to mention Milton because he is very symbolic of the utter, suppression of Anger, frustration, not having a say in corporate environments. he's just always mumbling, like, maybe I'll set the space on fire and like, don't, don't do this to me. Don't do this to me. he, feels both Disempowered and incredibly angry at the same time. And it's just boiling over and over.

Erin: 14:38

well, and it's also the way they depict it too, like how you often hear of an office environment. Oh, it's all the politics, it's this and that. It's who you know or who you're friends with. And poor Milton had no friends. Nobody really understood him or liked him or treated him well. Of course he's gonna be the one whose office keeps getting moved. And no one even knows that he was laid off. He kept getting his check for five years. he's all for five years, so he's just been kind of like floating. So it's just, yeah. So it's probably was really hard for him too. And nobody really even got to know him enough to probably know, like, this guy is suffering. Mm-hmm. Like he's gonna, he's gonna burn the, he really is gonna burn the place down. Yeah. You know, there's a lot of telltale signs that his mental health may have been, you know, not the most stable.

tanya: 15:24

If anyone had taken any time to listen to him and be like, oh, he's gotten to this point. he is not at burnout. He's at violent, destructive, which he inevitably acts upon. I know it's not directly shown, but the assumption is that he set the fire at the end. Got the checks and went off into the beach. And then even at the beach, when he didn't get the right drink he's like, I'll complain to your manager and then put strict nine in, in, in your drinks. Like he's got these really, he can't really stick up for himself, so he goes full on violent. it's pretty, scary. It's the embodiment of. somebody who becomes upset with the workplace and will come back and maybe shoot up a workplace or Harm people.

Erin: 16:02

Yeah. the red stapler, even though it's an inanimate object. was grounding him not to lose it completely. it was this one thing he was able to keep. For four or five times they kept moving him and, it was his thing that they kept trying to take. when the vice president, ended up taking it, that was the catalyst

tanya: 16:22

Now control was gone. Yeah. and the character Tom, he's also symbolic of somebody who, does not really know his role. He's kind of floating by and he's always fearful he is gonna get laid off probably because he knows he doesn't do very much. But then he realizes he is getting laid off and then he tries to, you know, Off himself. yeah. I dunno if we can say certain things, off himself and, it doesn't work. And then he realizes, when his wife comes in and interrupts it, he wants to live. And then when he is backing outta the garage, he gets hit by a, a truck and, and has, you know, he's, he's. He's very broken, but he is got a huge settlement on hand, so that, that kinda works out for him in an odd way. Yeah. Seven, seven

Erin: 17:00

figures. So he pretty much, yeah, it's, I don't wanna say he made out, but it's like he, he feels like he did. He feels like, okay, this is a good deal.

tanya: 17:10

Yeah. And he's able to find his own. Destiny in that way.'cause then he, was able to, be at home and he makes his jump to conclusions, Matt, which was like his dream. And maybe he can find something else to do or retire from that he's kind of another, important figure in this office culture. as well as the manager, of Peter Bill, who's just this typical, you know, there's a lot of stereotypical behaviors. he's just very much like, doesn't really listen, doesn't really care, focuses on silly things, And just kind of says things matter of fact has no empathy, it's a one-way conversation. just not in line with the people he's managing at all.

Erin: 17:48

I'm gonna need you to come in on Saturday. And Sunday.

tanya: 17:52

Yeah. and he has that kind of annoying, quirky, cadence that's just like, ugh. It just makes your skin crawl. But, you know, like, Hey,

Erin: 17:59

you don't have any plans this weekend, do you, is it okay? Or because if it was worded differently or if he was a different type of manager, Peter or the other employees might be like, oh yeah, I can come in for six hours. how about asking

tanya: 18:11

like earlier in the

Erin: 18:12

week, you know? Yeah. Instead of like, corner before the end of the week at five. Five o'clock when you're, you know, he is trying and trying to make a run for it.

tanya: 18:20

Yeah. he's just kind of, doesn't have any consideration. He is like, well, we had a lot of layoffs, and then they end up just having more useless meetings, like when Peter decides not to show up because he is over it by that point.

Erin: 18:31

Yeah. Meetings to have meetings and so many times. That's what it seems like a lot of companies do too. It's like, oh my gosh, another meeting.

tanya: 18:38

Yeah. nowadays it's more like, okay, that could have been an email, right? We didn't have to have that zoom meeting or whatever, the important memo for the cover letter that Peter just happens to miss. And every 12 people tell him like, oh, you're struggling. He's like, I just forgot to switch it over. it's not a big deal. And they make such a big deal about these things that are just so pointless. the memo, And he keeps, showing everyone

Erin: 18:58

like,

tanya: 18:58

I'll get you another copy of that.

Erin: 19:00

So they're not even listening. I have it.

tanya: 19:02

Yeah. they're just focusing on irrelevant bits. as opposed to what is it you're actually doing? what's the meaning here? What's the purpose? And that's what Peter is struggling with. he meets Joanna, who's also kind of struggling with that. She's also, I mean, she's in a different, she's, you know, a hostess or waitress at, at tchotchkes and she's just kind of, you know, all the, the silly rules of having at least 15 pieces of flare when really they want you to express yourself at 37. Be outgoing and work like a dancing monkey when you're probably getting paid barely minimum wage. For tips.

Erin: 19:32

it was funny when Peter takes Joanne out to lunch and then you know, the next door place and like she has her uniform on still. And so she has like all the little buttons, a little flare, he's like, oh, we're not in Kansas anymore. And she's like, oh yeah, I guess not. but she has no idea that he's referencing her flare. And he's like, no, no, your button, your button. She's like, what? Whatcha talking about? And then she's like, oh, no, it, it makes me really uncomfortable talking about my flare. I don't wanna talk about it. so that's when you start realizing there's this disconnect. So she's in this really ridiculously. Happy seeming place that she's working. her coworker is thrilled to be there. he has a thousand buttons on and you could just tell and I think that's also finding the commonality. Joanne and Peter, it's like, oh yeah, we're both not happy where we are. Peter is able to help Joanne figure out maybe you can work somewhere like this. Like the restaurant they were having lunch at.

tanya: 20:28

It's like she's also feeling the same kind of, dislike for her job and like, I don't fit in here when Peter goes to apologize to her because he thinks she slept with the boss. But it ends up being someone else, in the past. he's Disgusted by that and judging her. But then he, he apologizes and he's like, I just, I'm just feeling this like whole malaise of, of just life and everything and I just don't know how to. You know, whatever, like rectify that and she's like, you know, most people hate their jobs and she says something kind of important. Like, you know, most people don't like their jobs. you don't have to be happy all the time, but you can probably find something better. this doesn't mean that you just have to quit work and do nothing. Because I think he was feeling very hopeless at a certain point after, stealing the money And feeling like, oh God, now stuff's gonna happen from that. so I think they really help each other out in that regard mm-hmm. She also gains courage from him and knowing that he didn't show up for work and was just doing what he wanted to do. And she was like, I'm gonna quit this job and, flips off her boss and some customers at the same time. So they kind of meet each other where they're at it's a good, pairing in that regard. I was wondering have you had clients like this where they have had feelings with their workplace feeling like, this just isn't the right path, or feeling like the workplace culture is suffocating them?

Erin: 21:45

Yeah, I mean, with different things. I mean, I have. Clients in all different realms. therapists, people who work in the medical field, just corporate, you know, just different things, you know, for-profit, non-profit. I have had that with many different clients where they have that same experience and then it's navigating.

tanya: 22:04

yeah.

Erin: 22:04

Yeah. And then it's trying to navigate, trying to have them figure out what is it that you like about this? Or why do you feel stuck, or why do you feel, you know, like, so it's, trying to maybe even figure out if they want to leave or how they can navigate staying.

tanya: 22:18

I think it's something that I've had a lot of over the past couple of years, navigating. figuring out what you truly. want from life, if you feel like you're on the wrong path and saying mm-hmm. Is this something that you can, you know, kind of turn around or change up? Or is it finding maybe something in a different department? is corporate life in general not fitting you? I tend to find on average it's People are burned out with the role and management. And they usually need a change in their team. some people are I think they were kind of, um. Maybe led into corporate life. and never really questioned it until they were in it and realized maybe this doesn't really align with me. And they're like, well, I, the money that I get, I'm not gonna necessarily get anywhere else. So they feel a little stuck In that. I find that, sometimes with clients, and then it becomes their whole life some people can be like, okay, that's okay. I can find something else in a different department. Or maybe I can switch to nonprofit and feel like there's more meaning in that. Or maybe find a department or a team that has more meaning, But sometimes there are some people that are just like. They have to just make it work. And that can cause a lot of burnout, a lot of depression, and it's just about looking out for saying, Hey, are you willing to, to manage this with all this other stuff? is this kind of worth it? Like that balance of it, because, this is something that I remember thinking about when I was going into the work world. I remember thinking, I do not want that as. My working environment, it just seemed so unappealing. I didn't care if it was like the way or like money. I was just like, it just disgusted me and the environment still makes my stomach churn, honestly. in terms of if I were to think about working there day in, day out, if anybody else likes that, that's cool. I'm not trying to be judgmental, maybe I sound it, but that's just, it's not for me. It's not something I find. Connecting and, I don't feel like I could find meaning from it, I think that that's something exploring like meaning and what it is that you want Out of life is a lot of that in clients. well, and that sounds like that's

Erin: 24:17

really important for you too. Like to find a, to have a job that has meaning instead, you know, that's probably why you're a therapist.

tanya: 24:23

Yeah. To me that was the utmost, but some people, maybe it's, job security, feeling like they can have, you know, a challenge to move up and that's, that's, you know, to reach their own, you know, and yeah. I just, I do find that there are people that, that kind of set that without looking at other factors and then get stuck it usually is the factor of meaning and purpose. Feeling like they're not really doing anything that they like, they're, you know, don't wanna look back on their life and be like, oh, I, I don't feel like I really did anything meaningful. at least with some of the people I've talked to, it's a good movie. it's really funny. I think anybody that works in corporate or is aware of corporate culture, would appreciate it. Or anyone who's had to be stuck in a cubicle Or has coworkers or office. I love the themes of, burnout, finding yourself work, culture, how people react to stress at work. Also, how It's not as managed. I think nowadays corporate environments are better about managing employee stress and mental health.

Erin: 25:19

and also with some of the benefit packages now that companies have, they're like, oh, we have EAP and we encourage Mental Health Day, or We do these volunteer activities together. So they try to. Reach people where they're at I'm not saying that it works all the time, but they do try to have within the benefits package or maybe even have managers have a little bit better training. Sometimes

tanya: 25:42

they place more of an emphasis on it. I think it's more the forefront mental health in the past 20, 25 years. So yeah, that is very good, to have that. anything else that we wanna add from that?

Erin: 25:53

No, I think we covered all the different characters and, oh, one thing, which, is like the pivotal point of the movie too. One of the, you know, after everyone, after Samir and Michael Bolton get laid off, Peter's like, I have a present for you. So they, he takes'em to like a park or the woods or somewhere and unloads that broken printer and just lets them have at it. I mean, like, that's such a iconic point, you know? And I think too, when I first watched it, I was like, I don't understand this movie. I don't understand like the, the feeling of hating a object like that so much, you know, again, from working in offices. Post that movie, I do remember the disdain of like, ah, the printer's jammed, or this or that, or, you know, just, So, yeah, that was like a, you know, just them getting so angry. The two of them just wanted to, beat it up with a baseball bat or punch it

tanya: 26:43

Yeah, Michael Bolton keeps going after it.'cause he is just, so, it's like what it represents, like all the frustration of things just not working in such a dysfunctional environment. It's so symbolic that's pretty hilarious now. Looking at it. that is a very iconic scene. So, let's go to our challenge question. Our fun challenge question. The question, if you were to be set for life with your bills, but you had to have a job, what would you wanna do?

Erin: 27:08

if I was set for my bills and I could do anything I wanted, I think I would just like to. Figure out how to do like art, like, you know, just do art really well and have that as my hobby or career, maybe write a book. You know, everyone always says they wanna write a book, but if you didn't have to work and you could just have all the time, you could take the classes on how to write a book. You'd have the money to have a really good editor. I'd wanna do that. just work on different crafts. They're very. Isolating. But if I had all the money in the world, I could travel and do other things and wouldn't have to worry about finances. I could take all the classes so I could be with people, you know, whether it's certification or just learning things, maybe be a therapist, part time, Teach a class or be the person that goes into businesses. As a consultant, maybe I'd become a consultant, you know, might be one of the Bobs. Yeah, maybe I'd become a bob because I wouldn't really have to worry about the day-to-day, Monday through Friday therapy, I remember having some consultants and I was like, oh, they're kind of fun. They're doing like team building and they're doing, you know, find out your Myers-Briggs and doing different things. I think that could be fine. Like the occupational, Consultants. Yeah. That's cool. Like an io type of person. Yeah. I think that I'm industrial organizational therapist. I think that could be fun.

tanya: 28:20

Oh, that's what, I meant organizational therapist, not occupational.

Erin: 28:22

know what, I knew what you meant. I knew what you meant. You got me.

tanya: 28:24

Yeah. that's so funny. I would say almost the exact same thing, because I was thinking that I would love to just be able to write and travel and have the free time to go and enjoy and absorb, so I could engage in creative pursuits that I try now, but it's tough because we have this. Schedule, Of work like everybody does, everybody that needs to work I would love to paint and write and travel, but I also think I would like to continue therapy as well I think I would definitely reduce my schedule. I do think maybe I would have some therapy groups Something where I could be more creative in it if I had the time to set it up, I think that would be fun.

Erin: 29:01

And maybe that's would be more fun than doing a consultant.'cause I think I would like to still, I like the idea of like, hey. Let's, you know, have a yoga instructor do something, then we'll do this.

tanya: 29:12

You know,

Erin: 29:12

incorporate, or, I'll just do therapy

tanya: 29:15

or have a multidisciplinary therapy center where you could have different groups it doesn't have to be one-on-one therapy, it could be yoga or expressive arts and stuff like that. Creative kind of, that would be really

Erin: 29:25

Yeah. And then have so much money, you don't have to worry about the lease or the rent or having own in the building.

tanya: 29:30

Yeah. it could be like a sliding scale. You don't have to worry about that, What can you bring in your nonprofit into this? Yeah. That's perfect. I think that would be really awesome. I also think maybe doing some work with animals too, like just because I love animals and Me too. I think that would be something like that. there'd be a lot of different things Maybe not have as a set job, but I would do a lot of those things I don't know if I actually would. I would like that in my mind.

Erin: 29:53

Have some rescue something, Or just figure out.'cause I always like that, like when you think of Martha Stewart, she has all these horses and dogs and cats she has all the money and, hobbies too. It seems like she's doing some painting, or gardening, cooking, sewing. So something like that, but maybe not to that scale.

tanya: 30:09

Yeah. I would just like to do more expressive arts and stuff and Cooking and things like that. Gardening is not really my realm, but my husband could have fun and my in-laws, you know,'cause they like to do that stuff. I like the results of it.

Erin: 30:22

Yeah. I like gardening and the weeding and the trimming and stuff like that. Yeah, but I would like to learn more like art. Art,

tanya: 30:30

like expressive arts.

Erin: 30:31

so maybe we can open a center together. We'd be on the same track. we could open up a center together and Yeah. I like that. we would have it in Florida and mass, and we could just do like the whole east coast. We would just have a bunch of center. Yeah. Just

tanya: 30:43

And then maybe we pick somewhere out. Easter International if we're feeling, extra ambitious. And then we can have

Erin: 30:47

like a one room that's just our studio for when we record our podcast. So yes, there you go. And beds for Paige and Lucy Paige is next to me now.

tanya: 30:57

I think she just woke up. she looks confused. So she is like,

Erin: 31:00

what? Yeah,

tanya: 31:00

I think I heard my name. Yeah.

Erin: 31:02

Well, yeah, she has her hearing back. I don't know if I told you that,

tanya: 31:05

Okay.

Erin: 31:05

those of you that might not know Paige went deaf, in September from a really bad ear infection and some medication. So we've noticed she's been hearing her name. She's been coming when she's called. So that's been happening in the past couple weeks. it's really exciting. That is awesome. Well, good.

tanya: 31:21

we're very happy for Paige. yeah, she went through a lot and she's our little mascot dog. Yeah. Our little old lady. Yeah. But yeah, so let us know what you think. any suggestions for future episodes, anything in general. We'd love to hear from you. We're on all socials. you can find us anywhere. Send us a message and we will get back to you. thanks for tuning in. and don't forget, stay wicked and keep your mind well. All right. Have a great week. Bye bye guys.

31:57

Thanks so much for listening today to the Wicked Psychotherapist Podcast. Be sure to like and follow us on Apple, Spotify, and Amazon, or wherever else you listen to your podcasts.