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Are you where you want to be ...
in your book ... in your career ... in your life?
Few of us could answer YES to that question in all the areas of our life.
Are we trying too hard to DO
and forgetting simply to LIVE.
1.) ASK: DO YOU EVEN LIKE YOUR JOB OR YOUR DREAM?
What prompted you to that profession, to that dream (say of writing).
In the bustle of the struggle, we forget to think of the answer to that question.
Ask: Is this for me?
If the answer to that question is YES focus on what is most important at work,
instead of worrying about your own expectations.
STILL ...
The odds are you are NOT happy at work.
52.3 % of us are not according to a new study.
The prospects for long-term work with the same employer have eroded
and employees have been saddled with ever-higher health plan deductibles and payroll deductions.
2.) WHAT TO DO TO BECOME HAPPIER IN AN UNHAPPY JOB
Decide what is making you unhappy about your job and change what you can.
Sometimes you cannot change the external so then you must try to change the internal.
Change the stories you are telling yourself about your situation --
“I can’t stand this,” “This is awful,” or “I should be doing something else with my life.”
Unpleasant does not mean unbearable.
Life has its seasons (each teaches us important lessons if we but listen.)
Cursing at the rain never kept anyone dry.
We are where we are.
Try to find the humor in each hour or try to bring a smile to a co-worker.
Perspective is everything:
There are those in the Third World who would be astounded that you are miserable compared to where they are in their lives.
3.) BUILD MEANING WHERE YOU CAN
Find meaning where you can. Sometimes the relationships are what makes a job endurable.
Other times, the relationships are what gnaw at you.
Those miserable people teach you how NOT to be,
and they have to live with their dissatisfaction and bitterness every minute.
Imagine being angry within all the time.
There is worth in even the most minor of tasks if we do them with pride and integrity.
4.) CONNECT YOUR JOB TO BED-ROCK VALUES
Your job allows you to pay the bills and to care for your family -- that, at least, is positive.
If possible, place photos or reminders of those you love on your desk, in your locker ...
You will feel better for doing what is needed for them.
Perhaps your job allows you off time to pursue your dreams or to pay for tuition to reach your dreams.
5.) MAKE YOUR OWN MANTRA
Come up with things to think as you go about your work day such as:
What Blessings Are Mine Right Now?
Remember to Practice Kindness Today.
Let Go of What I Cannot Control.
Listen to What My Heart Is Trying To Tell Me.
Be Productive Yet Calm -- Inch By Inch and It is a Cinch.
Just Breathe.
6.) FOCUS ON WHAT MATTERS MOST
We often create unachievable expectations for ourselves.
Re-evaluate what you are doing and what you really need to do.
Look for the quality, not quantity of work.
Stop equating hours with doing a good job at your work or with your dream.
7.) LEAVE WORK AT WORK -- ESPECIALLY DURING DAYS OFF.
Plan the day and week to get what’s most important done during work hours.
Make tasks fun or enjoyable; they are not tasks but just part of your life. Experience them.
8.) GIVE YOURSELF THE GIFT OF FREE TIME
It’s not just becoming more efficient at work. You need to grant yourself permission to do less, and to begin living your life again.
Whatever re-charges your emotional batteries, plan a segment of time each day to do it.
It is a proven fact that if you do only 2 minutes of planned exercise a day, you will feel happier.
9.) DROP THE SUNDAY NIGHT BLUES.
If you feel a sinking feeling in your stomach each night before you start your work week,
realize that 5/7 of your life is made up of your employment.
Seek ways to bring a smile or happiness to each hour you are working (or writing).
Insist that you are going to make those 5/7 of your life worth living.
Look for reasons to laugh or smile each hour.
Look for a stressed face at work and try to ease the tightness you see there.
10.) LIFE IS FLEETING ... EXPERIENCE IT;
DON'T SIMPLY ENDURE IT!
I do like my job although it has its moments like any job. The work I do with my band and for my church is where I really feel I am contributing though.
ReplyDeleteMy job as rare blood courier is draining but needful to hurting others. But each kindness we do in the Father's Name is a light in the darkness, right?
DeleteI clearly get a visceral of your self, your heart and soul within this beautiful blog.
ReplyDeletePersons like yourself are precious blessings and Assets in the workplace, and in society in general.
Meeting you weekly at your workplace was a highlight of my life in Lake Charles. I will always be indebted to you for the calm you instilled in a very turbulent time of my life. You were a God-send to me; and you still are.
#2 and #3 are clearly qualities which you represent better than most. The sad thing is- not enough people exist within Society, or the workplace; like your self.
As I was struggling recently someone told me this, and this was a pleasant reminder of which I desperately needed to read/hear at the time: -
"compassion is everywhere, we just need to notice it. The world is as good as the quality of our attention". If you can guess who gave me this advice you win a door prize. Though I have not yet determined what that prize is. ;-)
It's so easy to get caught up in the race, unable to see in the Bog and fog of reality. Your wisdom is clairvoyance of a heart's compassion as demonstrated in your lovely Blog.
A wise person once told me:
- "the mind is like a pond undisturbed by winds when it is still." "When the mind is Disturbed the ripples flow as current across the pond, stirring up the sediment within, making it (life) impossible to clearly see through what was otherwise clear water".
Our life is a pond. When we take a clear glass and scoop water out of that Clear Pond, it takes minutes for the sediment to fall to the bottom so we can see clearly through the glass of water. The mind at ease, in self-reflection, meditation for simple observance of sentient life around us. Everything within our senses is sacred, as hard as such can be, to see through the sediment fog of reality. You are a lighthouse Shining through the deep dark night upon the ocean, for a stranded ship to find its way safely home into safety of our Harbor. Gassho 合掌
I really miss our weekly talks at my store, Robert. You were, and are, a special friend and man. :-)
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