Are you happy with your job? In this article, we’re going to share you 3 main keys to find joy in your daily work.
That question is very important because the majority of the time we spend in this world is working. From 8 AM. to 5 PM, we work, and this is repeated every day for decades.
Because it would be quite grim if we spent a very significant portion of that time in less than happy conditions.
Finding happiness in work is very important not only because we spend so much time in it.
Happiness at work is also important because:
- Studies show that maximum performance and productivity can only be achieved if you can feel happiness in your work.
- Happiness at work is also very effective against the threat of stress due to work — a deadly threat that if left untreated will make our physical health easy to decline.
So how can we be happier with our work? Here are three solutions to find joy in the work you live each day with dedication.
1. Always try to find and feel the positive things from the work you do.
The first solution is simple but often forgotten by many people: that is to always try to find positive things in the world around us, including the work we do.
So far, it is easy for us to feel sad or unhappy with our work at the office, because we may also be tempted by a negative bias. Our minds are easier and more obsessed with seeing the various shortcomings that exist in the world of work that we live in.
As the result, our feelings and hearts become very easily disappointed. Because the mind’s muscles are always focused on negative things.
Change that point of view. Try to train your mind muscles to see the positives of your work and all the aspects in it. Dig, find and reflect on the little things that are worthy of gratitude from your work.
Train your mind muscles to be sensitive and easy to be grateful for positive things. This will make our souls become more appreciative of life. With that, participate in caring for positive hopes for the future.
2. Find a job or work activity that is challenging, provides fairly broad job autonomy, and able to provide concrete feedback.
A study conducted by Hackman (2007) found that you will tend to be happier in your job if you feel the three things: challenging tasks, job autonomy and job feedback.
Challenging tasks are a series of tasks that are quite challenging, and really test your potential to the most optimal point. Challenging tasks are not something to be feared or avoided. This task is actually very good for your self-development.
If your type of work is too monotonous and not challenging, then your growth process will actually stagnate. On the other hand, your capabilities will grow if you continue to clash with various complex and challenging tasks.
Always remember: experience is the best teacher to make you more competent. And this will only happen if the work experience is increasingly challenging tasks. Not the same task but every year repeated.
Job autonomy means that you have enough autonomy and freedom to complete the job completely. So there is room for you to improvise or innovative creations in the job.
While job feedback means that you can periodically see the progress of the work you are doing. Understanding the progress of task progress is very crucial for growing work motivation.
3. Participate in fostering a pleasant work climate
Inevitably the work environment factor (relationships with superiors, subordinates or fellow coworkers) is very important to foster happiness in the world of work.
You should proactively, together with your superiors or other co-workers. Carry out various activities to foster togetherness, cohesiveness and teamwork in the work environment you live in. Create various rituals together or collective activities, where you and the rest of the team can create productive and fun social interactions.
For example, there is few companies that implements Friday Gratitude Week. So every Friday afternoon around 4 o’clock, each division or department will gather with their respective members.
In the meeting every Friday afternoon, each member present is asked to convey two things/events/work activities that they deserve to be grateful for and appreciate, which occurred throughout the week. And also what positive lessons can be drawn from it.
Through this simple habit, an appreciative culture is slowly growing within the organization. When an annual survey was conducted, employees said that this ritual had a positive impact on the growth of their gratitude and happiness at work. This kind of work climate is undeniably able to make a valuable contribution to the emergence of a conducive and productive work environment for its employees.
You could try doing something similar in your office.
Collective rituals like the one above are actually the development of a principle. Giving more space for appreciation of the positive things in life, will undoubtedly have a good impact on the future (rather than just focusing on negative things).
Read Also: Why Are You Unhappy? 14 Factors That Eliminate Joy in Your Life
Bottom Line
These three solutions are important to carry out if you want to find joy in your work. If you have been more frustrated or find less happiness with your job or profession, then your happiness could fall even further.
