While some people hop out of bed in the morning ready to tackle the day that lies ahead, others find it a bit harder to maintain positivity in their career.
Happiness at work depends on a variety of factors. Fortunately, many of them are within your control. With a bit of effort and commitment, you can achieve the happiness you are searching for in your role. But first, you need to make sure that it’s the right job for you.
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If you are sure the role you’re in is the right job for you, but lately you feel like you’ve hit a wall, then use our tips below to get your happiness back on track:
Don’t dwell on the negatives
When something bad happens at work, it can be hard to detach yourself from it. Everyone makes mistakes, so don’t beat yourself up over it. Instead, make yourself aware of the problem, and try not to let it happen again in future. Life is too short to feel inadequate – tackle the issue appropriately and move on.
Don’t isolate yourself
It’s easy to hate your job if you haven’t gotten to know your colleagues. If you continue to avoid them, it’s even easier.
If you’re just starting out in a new job, this is the best time to begin developing relationships at work. Take five minutes to gab to your peers while making a cup of tea, or get involved in conversations in the office.
If you’re situation is a little more isolated, for example, you work from home every day, find time to get in to your local office so you can look forward to a bit of social interaction through the week.
Look for opportunities of growth
Far too often, we stress about progression at work. We look at different situations as a chance to fail, as opposed to an opportunity to develop. Ever had that nagging thought that says “Will this make me look bad?”.
The result is that we shy away from potential opportunities to avoid falling flat on our face. If you regularly have thoughts like this, start looking for more opportunities at work. Start a new project, find a more efficient way to execute a task…anything that could benefit yourself, and more importantly, your co-workers.
You could also try mixing up your routine so that you don’t feel like you’re ‘going through the motions’ every day.
Don’t hold a grudge
When you have worked at the same company for a long time, this can quite easily happen. Drop the past, and look to the future. Holding a grudge will only encourage more hostile feelings that could later affect how you perform, and perceive your job.
Avoid wasting time on jealous thoughts
Jealousy can eat away at every thought you have at work. Whether you feel like it was you who was entitled to that promotion, or that you’re not getting as many opportunities as your colleague, you have to swallow those feelings if you want to get ahead.
Be happy for those who succeed around you, and remember that each person’s situation is different. Whatever has happened to them is bound to happen to you eventually – it’s just not your time yet.
Don’t be afraid to ask
If there is something you don’t like about your job, ask to change it. Having the courage to communicate with your manager shows that you perceive a problem, and would like to change it to improve your career. You can’t expect them to know that you don’t enjoy this part of the job, so don’t get angry if you haven’t told them about it.
Want a promotion? Ask how you can work towards it. Salary raise? Take on more responsibility to show you are worth more to your company. Maybe you need a different project to work on? Ask if you can try something new!
This is something a lot people don’t take advantage of. The worst thing your manager can say is no – at least then, you know where you stand as opposed to wondering what could have happened if you asked.
Don’t waste your energy
Sometimes it can be hard to pick yourself back up when you’re in a rut. Life’s too short to not experience joy in your work, so find out where you could inject a bit of happiness in to your job, and work on it.
Happiness isn’t something you should expect to be provided – you have to change what you’re doing now in the hope that it improves your time at work in future.
Don’t just make your work a priority, make happiness your priority too. Once you’ve identified ways to improve your mood at work, there’s nothing stopping you from achieving what you’ve set out to do since you first started your job.
