Does “be lost in something” have a positive or negative meaning?

Question

I get lost in my job.

What does it mean?

1. I get immersed in my work so deeply even the outside world seems to cease to exist (because I'm concentrating so much on what I'm doing). (Which sounds kind of positive, in general.)
2. Even though I concentrate on my job as much as I can (not paying attention to the outside world), I can't really solve some problems in my work. (Which implies strong negative feelings).

I think the first one's correct, but I need confirmation and/or correction, please.

Answer 1

The first interpretation (becoming immersed to the exclusion of other concerns) is correct, but that doesn't necessarily make it a positive. (The second would probably be better phrased as "I get lost at my job".)

The speaker may be referring to "being in the zone", or may be saying "I could get drunk and stay that way, but I've chosen to hide from the harshness of reality in an artificial process instead". One is becoming one with the Zen of creativity; the other indicates a level of dysfunction.