I’ve got a secret.
Whenever I tell people, they look at me with the kind of cynical eyes that only English people can muster. They think I’m lying, or that I’m so naive and comparably new to the working world, that what I’m saying is somehow vaguely amusing. Or adorable. Or just plain smug.
So, what’s the secret? Well, here it is *drum roll, please*:
[box] I love going to work. [/box]
I can almost hear you deflating at that statement, and I don’t blame you. I never used to understand how people could genuinely like, let alone love, going to the dreaded office every day.
I’ve had some jobs in the past that, on some days, I genuinely loathed. My first job (cleaning at a doctor’s surgery whilst I was still at school) was terribly paid and hard work. I’ve worked in pubs so disgusting that my feet would instantly weld to the floor as soon as my shoes touched them, thick with slops and spillages. I’ve scrubbed the carpets of a nursing home, whilst a boss with a trap like a foghorn barked orders at me – and all to earn a few quid to pay my way whilst at Uni.
The horror stories aside (and we’ve all got them), I didn’t have to go through years of training to learn to love what I do. I didn’t have to change any of those roles, or try a hundred different things to find the career that was just right for me. I just love what I do – whatever I’m doing.
I began to notice the positive things about every job I had, and took the time to appreciate the best bits. The job at the doctor’s was hard work, but I got to spend rare time on my own with my Mum, who would often work overtime there at weekends. The job in the pub was gross, but I met some incredibly interesting characters who I’d never have had reason to speak to otherwise. The job at the nursing home was tough, but it taught me how to cope with difficult managers and introduced me to some of the most beautiful elderly people I’ve ever met in my life – all of whom were amazingly witty, vibrant people, if you just took 5 minutes to listen to them.
The point is, there’s always something positive to look out for.
That’s not to say that you can do anything and be happy.
We all need different things from our careers – personally, I enjoy the challenge that every day brings. I enjoy working with people who can be difficult, or sometimes just plain rude. I like that sometimes things don’t always go to plan, and I get a real buzz from finding the alternative route to the solution.
However, the one thing I’ve strived to do throughout all of my roles to date is look for the positive. I take this as seriously as every other part of my job, because it’s the key thing that powers my ideas, and the reason I get out of bed in the morning. I don’t rush out the door because I’m being paid to do so – I do it because I really, genuinely want to.
If you wake up thinking about the deadlines, the stony faced Directors and the 8 hour slog, there’s a good chance you’ll feel like burying your head under the pillow and hitting snooze a few times. But if you wake up thinking about the buzz of your team, resolving a challenge and making a difference, there’s a good chance you’ll feel much more inspired about clocking in.
Easier said than done, right?
I know what you’re thinking – it’s all well and good to say these things, but doing them is something else altogether. You’re right – it’s not something you can switch on and off. But there are measures you can take to improve your personal happiness at work – you’ve just got to make the time to do it.
Take Shawn Achor’s 21 Day Challenge, for example. A few simple tasks, carried out each day, can make all the difference to how happy you are:
[box]
1. Write down three new things you are grateful for each day into a blank word document or into the free app I Journal. Research shows this will significantly improve your optimism even 6 months later, and raises your success rates significantly.
2. Write for 2 minutes a day describing one positive experience you had over the past 24 hours. This is a strategy to help transform you from a task-based thinker, to a meaning based thinker who scans the world
for meaning instead of endless to-dos. This dramatically increases work happiness.
3. Exercise for 10 minutes a day. This trains your brain to believe your behavior matters, which causes a cascade of success throughout the rest of the day.
4. Meditate for 2 minutes, focusing on your breath going in and out. This will help you undo the negative effects of multitasking. Research shows you get multiple tasks done faster if you do them one at a time. It also decreases stress and raises happiness.
5. Write one, quick email first thing in the morning thanking or praising a member on your team. This significantly increases your feeling of social support. [/box]
Why not give it a try? You can find out more about Shawn Achor and the 21 Day Challenge here.
Happiness starts with you. If you want to be happier at work and see things in a more positive light, the power truly is in your hands – you just have to look for the positive in the little things.
