Your level of job satisfaction carries over into your personal life, and affects not only you but also those around you. Finding happiness in your workplace improves your quality of life, job performance, and opportunity. Why wouldn’t you do what you can to be happy with your job? Here are 7 tips to do just that:
- Get organized. With your amount of responsibilities, keeping track of them all can be overwhelming. The more organized you are, the less stressful (and shorter!) your to-do list will seem.
- Identify, as honestly as possible, what currently makes you unhappy/happy at work. Then, make a new list of personal guidelines that will make it easy for you to be happy, and difficult for you to be unhappy. Post that list at your work station where you can see it. Happiness is choice and perspective.
- Get enough sleep. Although caffeine can do wonders, you can’t always replace a good night’s sleep with a cup o’ joe. Research is clear that most of us need at least 7 hours each night in order for our brains to optimally perform.
- Have work/home life separation. Know the balance between the two lives, and disengage from work after you’ve finished for the day.
- Connect with co-workers. Whether you work in a small or large office, it’s important to get to know those you work with. Offices that have this team-environment tend to foster fewer politics, and more satisfied employees.
- Focus on the common goal, instead of the race. A wise boss once said, “Do what you need to do without being concerned with who gets the pat on the back for it. If your actions get the team closer to their common goal, the credit is unimportant.”
- Get to work early. It may seem counter-intuitive that getting to work earlier will make you happier, but those 20 extra minutes in the morning could allow you to cross many of the small things off your to-do list. Chances are they will be the most distraction-free, thus productive, minutes of your entire day, freeing yourself from a heavy mind and setting the tone for positivity.