Category Archives: Enjoy Your Work More

When you begin to lose joy in your work and find the day-to-day grind not fun anymore, you might have a tendency to want to quit at that moment. This isn’t the most practical solution. You may have to stick it out for a few more months or even for a year or two because of your personal obligations such as financial security, mortgages, debt and children. It’s frustrating to have to stay at a job that doesn’t bring you enjoyment.

When you lose excitement for your work, how can you bring new vigor to your relationship with your job?

Here are some suggestions to help you gain high job satisfaction What are the top five things you like most about your work?

It might seem hard at first to start this list, but you’ll be surprised what you come up with once you begin. By making this list, you … Continue reading High Job Satisfaction – Bring New Vigor to Your Job →

Are you wanting to know how to love your current job? It’s very easy in today’s workplace to get into patterns of behavior. You complete the same tasks the same way, work with the same people so you have probably fallen into a familiar routine. It is comforting and known. It is also a rut. If you’re in one, here are four steps you can take to get out of it.

Learn How to Love Your Job With These 4 steps Get outside.

In order to see where you are, you need to step outside the rut and look at how you may be held back and restricted by your routine. Consider what artificial blinders you may have in place that limit your viewpoint and creativity. Expand your field of vision and see the possibilities in your future. Look at your job with the eyes of an outsider and consider … Continue reading How to Love Your Job →

No raise + no promotion = no motivation

A lot of my clients work at fast moving, high growth companies. They’ve come to expect annual raises, be promoted, continue to grow their careers and have countless opportunities. This has been the culture for years. However, in today’s economy, raises and job promotions are few and far between.

Even though many say “I should be thankful I have a job and grateful I get a paycheck,” it’s not how they actually feel. Fact is, they feel guilty they are worrying about raises and promotions while others are far less fortunate.

This situation can be very difficult, especially for people who have wanted (and deserved) a pay raise or promotion and now it’s going to take even longer to get one. They feel it might never happen and they start to lose all hope.

The challenge for … Continue reading Get Motivated to Work →

“Money can’t buy happiness, but it can buy you the kind of misery you prefer.” (Anonymous)

Does that describe your job situation today? Does your current work satisfy you? Really? On what levels? If you were asked to write down your #1 long-term priority, would you choose happiness or money, especially if you know that money doesn’t buy happiness?

Ask yourself these 3 questions to learn how money doesn’t buy happiness at work. Are you here by accident?

Many of us have fallen into a particular line of work by accident. We learn about a job opening through a friend or we jump to a new position because it offers higher pay. We stay with a job because we need the benefits or because we honestly believe we don’t have any better options. Are you in the zone?

Perhaps you’re staying with a job because you’re in your … Continue reading Money Doesn’t Buy Happiness →

Are you working more and enjoying it less? A job is a bit like falling in love. At first it’s all champagne and flowers. It’s fun, interesting, filled with new challenges that make your heart beat faster. But then the new wears off, and the thrill is gone. We don’t know how to enjoy work anymore.

Most people come to work not just because they need a job — they really want to work. Beyond the money, we expect satisfaction out of our work today. We want to contribute. We want to learn new skills, to grow professionally. And we want to feel that we’re part of a successful organization that is making a difference in the world. These are the things that keep us coming back through the door every morning. We want to know how to enjoy work.

If you have begun to view your work … Continue reading Six Ways on How to Enjoy Your Work →

Thanksgiving gets only one day a year, officially. But our life and work would be improved dramatically if we made every day a Thanksgiving Day.

Research by Robert Emmons and his colleagues at the University of California at Davis has shown that a regular practice of gratitude can have a positive effect on both physical and emotional health. Rather than focusing on illness and emotional problems, they recommend emphasizing health-promoting behavior and the pleasurable parts of life.* When you practice gratitude, the mindset will be, “I’m grateful for my job.”

So how do we apply that philosophy in the workplace? In our continual rush to get things done, we sometimes overlook the most important aspects of our lives, including our relationships with others.

This article focuses on being grateful for “my” job, appreciating our colleagues, and making room for trust. I encourage you to take time this week … Continue reading I’m Grateful For My Job &
Appreciate My Colleagues →

A few years ago, a close relative of mine was killed in a plane crash. At her funeral, my Uncle said to me, “Time goes by so fast.” There was a long, thoughtful pause after he said these words. He was 69 years old and was no doubt reflecting on his own life, as well.

This conversation had a profound impact on me. I wondered, “How to make the most of your life.” It gave me insight into why many of my clients decide to make huge changes in their lives when they reach their 40’s and early 50’s. They are entering the last third of their lives. They realize that time is moving quickly and if they don’t act now, their time will be gone.

When we are young, we aren’t concerned with time, just enjoying life and all its many blessings. As teenagers, we feel invincible and consider … Continue reading How to Make the Most of Your Life →

According to more than a dozen medical studies the path to a longer, healthier life is fairly simple: be optimistic. Dr. Christopher Petersen, a professor of psychology at the University of Michigan, has found that pessimistic young people are less likely to grow into healthy adults, and more likely to die prematurely. Pessimists are also more likely to suffer traumatic accidents.

Believe it or not, optimism also pays off at the racetrack. Dr. Petersen’s studies revealed that pessimists were more likely to take risky bets and lose while optimists came away the winners. So it’s no surprise that optimism also pays dividends in the workplace. Positive people are more likely to get hired and promoted.

But there’s one problem. It’s ourselves. We’re our own worst enemies when it comes to positive thinking. We need to overcome self criticism by being aware of the constant self-evaluation.

Self-evaluation is an effective … Continue reading Overcome Self Criticism →

Your role models for work showed up very early — with your parents and family. As children, we are very observant, and most of what we learn as young children stays with us for life. So what happens to you if your parents were poor role models about work? One client recently confided:

When my father came home from work, I saw a hardworking man who was not happy. He was a role model, but a role model who showed me how to NOT be happy in my career. Work for me looked like long hours with no real rewards other than paying the bills.

Can you see yourself in this picture? Maybe so, but that was then — this is now. Instead of dwelling in the past, let’s find some ways to turn those early messages around.

Make a list of the messages you received from your early … Continue reading Parents Working Long Hours
Poor Role Models →