That's a good idea, to get comfortable with the job ending at some point. There's something that will trigger a mass exodus within two years. I think all the other stuff was paranoia on my part. It's sort of the same issue I had in the beginning - I am interpreting lack of organization and general chaos as some sort of plan and it just isn't.

I vividly remember being wiped out from not having enough work to do and being worried that my employer would find out any day that they were paying me money to sit around waiting for someone to give me something to do. It's really an awful place to be in, perhaps worse than being overworked.

You're making the right moves, talking to other departments... but when you are in a dysfunctional organization, there's only so much you can do. Do you have any interest in taking on some of the management activities your boss neglects? It could be win-win - you get better exposure, he's happy, and your team finds some relief from his mismanagement.

After the job with too little work (and a bit of a break), I transitioned to a job that was very product oriented. I was responsible for getting Project A out the door by X date. All the projects were the same and it was pretty mindless -- and *so satisfying.* Very clear cut!

That motivation study does sound really interesting. I wonder if I would be an achiever? Or a thinker? What was a thinker? I'm guessing the part of me that daydreams about projects I never start/finish goes in the thinker category, LOL.

I'm hopeful that I will turn a corner soon re: my schedule and a backup plan. I am still so focused on short term goals. I have a ton of 'fun' stuff that I am trying to cram in now that I have $$$ to pay for it. A friend once told me that he thought carpe diem was an exhausting way to live. He was right!