When the economy is facing the decline that ours has these past few years, it can be hard to get yourself excited for things as you battle worries about work, bills and general life stability.
This is perhaps why, according to new research by Zety, a whopping three-quarters (75%) of 1,075 people surveyed would choose their career over their romantic relationships or even marriages. Yes, really.
And we guess it makes sense, when one of these things pays our ever-increasing bills and one absolutely does not – unless you’re in a relationship with a millionaire.
Yet the same research found only 23% of people are ever fully engaged at work and only 38% take pride in their professional achievements.
Writer Elle Merilatt is one of the 75% who put her career before love – and she has no regrets. In a piece for Bolde, she said: “Excluding some rare situations, I’d advise against letting your career suffer in the name of love.
“In fact, I think you should always put your career first. I did, and I totally don’t regret it.”
She added that she wasn’t “closed off to love” she just vowed to never let it distract her from her goals. Being successful in her career also made her feel more confident and helped her to be more financially independent.
“The biggest reason I’d never put my relationship above my job? When you break up, the relationship’s over, but your life isn’t. At the end of the day, you still have to go to work, pay bills and too many other things to name,” she wrote.
“My career isn’t worth it if I’m coming home to an empty house”
Not everyone feels this way, though. In fact, the findings contrast entirely with what life coach and author Michelle Ellman said in her latest newsletter about how, after almost a decade of prioritising independence and growing her career, she’s now putting her relationship ahead of any job or email.
She wrote: “People would say I shouldn’t let a man affect my work. That I shouldn’t put a man above my career, but is it really a weakness that I value our relationship more than I value whatever job I have on that day?”
She added: “It’s not about putting a man above your career, it’s about how I realised that my career isn’t worth it if I’m coming home to an empty house.”
Additionally, anxiety therapist Danielle Wayne suggests putting work before relationships is “a recipe for relationship disaster”.
She said: “If you prioritise your career over your relationship, you might not have the latter for very long. Think about how you want to be treated.”