If 33.33% of our lives are spent sleeping, a substantial third is spent at work. 90,000 hours is the average time spent at work. When you spend a significant amount of time doing something, you probably want to ensure you enjoy doing it as well. So, let’s talk about Decoding Happiness at Work. Is employee happiness the sole responsibility of the organization? Or is it an individual responsibility? Can happiness have a common definition with a workforce that includes people from diverse backgrounds, different age groups, and unique personalities? Let’s delve deeper.
The 2 Pillars:
It’s no secret that happy employees are more active and productive. But happiness is personal and subjective. No one rule or practice can make all employees happy. And while the organization ecosystem does matter, two vital elements link happiness and work:
- Expression (Are you able to express your core talent?)
- Expectations (What are your expectations?)
Expression: Do What You Love:
“Choose a job you love, and you will never have to work a day in your life.” ― Confucius.
A clear driver of happiness at work is when you do what you love, and you have the opportunity to express your core talent. When you pursue your passion as a career, you wake up with excitement and an endless flow of energy. You are so completely immersed and engaged that the hours seem to disappear. Explore your talents, focus on your strengths, and pursue a career that allows complete expression of who you are.
On the contrary, it feels like drudgery when you are in a job you dislike. You dread the mornings, the hours seem long, and everything about work seems toxic. More often than not, you spend your hours at work wondering if you should quit, constantly feeling that, “The grass is always greener on the other side.”
But not all are fortunate to make their passion work for them. Not everyone is lucky to transform passion into a career. What then? In that case, find ways to pursue what matters most alongside your job. For instance, I am the Director & Head HR, but I found ways of doing something more aligned to who I am in being a Happiness Mentor. Find your sweet spot of fulfilment.
Here’s how you can Leverage Your Internal Energy to be Happy
Expectations: Love What You Do
“To be successful, the first thing to do is fall in love with your work.” – Sister Mary Lauretta.
The second element is expectations. When you cannot do what you love, learn to love what you do.
What are your expectations from your work? If your focus is a promotion or salary raise, your experience of joy is impacted by external factors. Versus, if you expect to learn, grow, be productive, and be of value to the organization, the locus of control is with you. Your ability to be happier is higher in this case.
When you focus on growth, the rewards follow; awards, recognition, or a raise. But when your expectations are focused on an outcome, not in your control, you will feel the disconnect, leading to unhappy work life.
Often, we find ourselves in jobs that adequately fund our life needs but do not give us that exhilarating sense of fulfilment. A shift in mindset from “what will I get?” to “What difference can I make?” will set you on the path of personal growth leading to happiness. Upskill, reskill, focus on being more productive and see the magical results.
Barriers:
One might argue, what if I have a terrible manager, really dislike my job profile, or the office lacks good work culture? These barriers and obstacles arise only when the two pillars are not in sync.
When you don’t like your work, distractions and procrastinations become routine. If you fall prey to the outcome trap and compare yourself with others who got that desired promotion and raise, you invite demotivation.
If you’re feeling demotivated, here’s my 3-step approach to snap out of the demotivation trap.
Decoding Happiness at Work: Being in Sync
The obstacles to happiness start playing out when your expression and expectations are not in sync. Happiness at work is undoubtedly a shared goal. The organization ecosystem and work culture are vital to employee happiness, but we are individually responsible for how happy or miserable we feel at work.
Explore your talents, have a sense of purpose at work, and focus on personal growth, and you will see that happiness and work can go hand-in-hand.
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