‘Hated every aspect’: 23-year-old says she is done working 9-5

A 23-year-old Aussie has admitted to being a “terrible” employee, with the Gen Zer saying she is well and truly fed up with working for other people.

Gen Zers are more interested in being the boss than having a boss.

Australian market research company McCrindle found that 79 per cent of Gen Zer’s ideal working situation is a business they started. Plus, financial service Hnry has seen Gen Z sole traders skyrocket by 127 per cent in 2023.

At 23, Natalie Sinead is already done with working for anyone else but herself. She lives in Queensland and is a full-time influencer and content creator, and she’s not sold on the idea of ever working for someone else again.

“I found myself never being acknowledged for the hard work I would put in. It felt like no matter how much I did right, as soon as I didn’t perform 100 per cent, I’d be punished or treated poorly,” she told news.com.au.

Gen Zers are more interested in being the boss than having a boss. Picture: Instagram/nataliesinead

Natalie Sinead said she never felt ‘acknowledged’ for the hard work she did. Picture: Instagram/nataliesinead

Ms Sinead, who used to work in retail, said she didn’t like not having control over her schedule or being given “s**t shifts” where she couldn’t plan anything around her day.

“I didn’t enjoy not having control over my schedule. If I wanted to organise something, I had to ask for permission and that never sat well with me,” she said.

Online, Ms Sinead has shared that she wasn’t exactly a model employee when she worked for someone else.

“I am a terrible employee. I am horrible. I have been the worst employee. I was the girl who had an illness anytime I had an event on. I’d call in sick whenever I could, and I was constantly late,” she admitted.

The 23-year-old doesn't like working for other people. Picture: Instagram/nataliesinead

She was a dog walker before her career took off. Picture: Instagram/nataliesinead

In 2021, Ms Sinead landed her first full-time retail job, but she immediately knew that it wasn’t for her.

“It was my first and only full-time job, but after a few short weeks I knew I wanted to quit and find something else because I hated every aspect of the 9-5 life,” she said.

“I quit that job in mid-2021. At the time, my boyfriend was working as a salesman for a digital marketing course. I was offered the course for free in an attempt to launch my own marketing agency. Hopefully, it would be the key to my freedom, but after about a year, I realised it was not for me.”

Feeling lost, she googled “ways to make money online” and applied for a few modelling agencies and jobs that never went anywhere.

“At this point, I was still posting online and wished I could just make money from content creation, but my platform was tiny. I was stumped because no brands wanted to work with me as an influencer,” she said.

To support herself while she tried to build her social media following, she took up dog walking to make money. Eventually, after a lot of perseverance, things started to pay off.

By 2022, she landed her first retainer client the steady income meant she could quit dog

walking.

“I was officially self-employed and making money for the first time in my life. Then in August 2023 my boyfriend and I split for a few months and I posted about it and I guess I would consider this my viral moment because my video hit over 12 million views and my platforms exploded,” she said.

Working for other people just wasn’t her thing, so becoming her own boss has been a game changer for her because she loves the freedom.

“I get to control how much money I want to make. If I have a goal, I can think to myself, ‘Okay, what do I need to do in order to get there?’ and just go for it,” she said.

“I don’t have to ask for permission to live my life. If I want to book a trip, I can. If I want to go to the gym in the middle of the day, I can. Nothing holds me back, and I love it.”

She loves being able to manage her own time. Picture: Instagram/nataliesinead

She thinks Gen Zers are over working long hours for little pay-off. Picture: Instagram/nataliesinead

The 23-year-old has also noticed other young people ditching 9-5 jobs to become their own bosses.

“I’d say people are just over working 38+ hour weeks for next to no money and having no time for themselves, loved ones or to live life,” she said.

“I love that people have more freedom of choice to do whatever it is that makes them feel happy and fulfilled. The office 9-5 way of life isn’t for everyone and I support anyone who wants to stay out of the norm to chase their dreams.”

Recruitment expert Roxanne Calder said Gen Z are driven to be their own bosses because they crave freedom.

“A big driver is the freedom,” she told news.com.au.

Ms Calder said Gen Z is the first digital generation that grew up with iPads in their hands. They have always had “access to everything” and have seen how successful people don’t just have to work 9-5.

“Baby Boomers wanted job security, but Gen Z, I think, is seeking something more and wants to avoid the constraints that traditional employment does impose,” she said.

Ms Calder said there’s nothing wrong with Gen Z wanting to go out on their own. It speaks to the fact that they are a “value” generation that isn’t driven by money but rather by making a difference.

However, she worries they haven’t always done the “groundwork” first to equip themselves with the knowledge they need to be their own bosses.

Originally published as ‘Hated every aspect’: 23-year-old says she is done working 9-5