How to fall in love with your job again

“Choose a job you love and you’ll never have to work a day in your life.” Confucius

Without a doubt, it is a very lucky person who wakes up every morning and jumps out of bed desperate to start work.

Or is it luck? 

Enjoying your day is something that you have the power to be in control of and the time you spend at work is an important part of that.

We all have moments where having another day tagged onto the weekend would be a glorious thing but, if you don’t look forward to working most of the time. then this could be the moment to fall in love with your job again.

It is pretty much established that work is what keeps us going: it pays the bills, means that we can afford to do things we enjoy, as well as getting to spend time with some really fantastic colleagues but if we feel like a slave to work and don’t enjoy it at all, then it’s either time to look for something else completely or find a way to get that spark back.

Ideally, we should all want to go to bed looking forward to turning off the alarm in the morning because it will make a huge difference to how you see life and enjoy every day.

Having a job you thrive at will boost your happiness and confidence, it will be a part of your purpose. Work should not consume your life, but it should be a very happy and healthy part of it.

So, if you feel as if you and your job are not quite seeing eye to eye at the moment, here are a few tips:

-         Write down what it is that you first loved about your job. Why did you apply for it in the beginning? What are the parts of it that ignite passion and joy? If you find that those areas have dwindled or gone altogether try to work out why that’s happened and how you can get them back.

-         Be realistic about how work fits into your life. Are you spending more hours on areas that aren’t actually important to your success? Have you looked at what your goals are and have you shared that with the people you work with? Having support will make it much easier to reach where you want to be.

-         Look for new areas in your work that you can get involved with. If you love speaking for example, see if there are opportunities to do more of that through networking or giving workshops. Equally, if there’s an area you’d like to develop, see if there are courses to help, either online or in person, there is a great variety of courses out there to suit all levels and budgets in every field imaginable.

-         Manage your expectations. Look at how much you can realistically commit to working each day. Did you once work every hour imaginable but now have a different way of life and find that hard to sustain? People who work overtime often do so for additional income or just because they feel they need to keep on top of their workload. Either way, if you are working long hours that are starting to take their toll, talk to a coach, friends, colleagues, or directors to see how you can be helped to manage time better but still sustain an income that works for you. 

-         Enjoy your successes, whatever their size. Break any cycle of self-doubt and criticism and be proud to whoop and cheer when you make something happen. It could be finishing a presentation you’ve been working on for days, being brave enough to have a difficult client or colleague conversation, or you’ve sent an email you’ve had on your to-do list forever. They are all important factors in moving ahead and therefore worthy of a well-earned pat on the back.

-         Find your people. Surround yourself with positive types who are quick to support you at work and champion what you are doing. You want to be able to speak your mind freely without any worries of repercussions and to be in a team that welcomes your point of view whatever it may be. Also, try to find the time to get to know colleagues better, knowing what makes them tick will definitely make working alongside them even more enjoyable.

-         Be sure to look after yourself. If you are tired and not eating properly then everything will seem difficult.  Make sure you put at least an hour a day to one side when you do nothing but focus entirely on yourself. Whether that be reading, running, writing, lying in the bath, or watching the latest blockbuster on TV. You need to switch off from work to feel refreshed and ready to take on the world again.

If you would like further information about the accredited coaching that I offer, and how you could be supported and coached in all aspects of your life then please get in touch here.