Do you find it difficult to drag yourself out of bed and out the door to work each day? Are you frustrated and unhappy with your work, but are not ready or able to make a career change? It may be time for a new perspective. Happiness is a choice. Developing some very simple habits can help you gain a new perspective at work and allow you to find happiness.
“When life gives you lemons, make lemonade”. I know, good old-fashioned advice from mom may sound a bit oversimplified. Sometimes our work situation is not going to get better, no matter what we do to change it. However, most of us can find a brighter side at work by following some of mom’s best advice and creating everyday habits that give us not only more joy. It’s amazing what a new perspective can do for a tough situation.
Follow these 4 simple steps to creating happiness at work:
“Focus on the positive”
Spending a bunch of your time thinking about the things that you don’t like about work doesn’t change your situation, and only contributes to your unhappiness. Remember, it’s time for a new perspective. Choose to find the things about your job that you enjoy. Perhaps there is a specific task you especially like, or a co-workers that makes you laugh. Don’t forget about the simple things we may often overlook. Pay attention when you have time to take a coffee break, notice the scent of a fragrant flower, or receive a friendly gesture or compliment.
One way to do this is to consider things in your life and at work that are going well, and that you are grateful for. Spend a little time at the beginning of each day thinking about them or writing them down. Creating a ritual around this, perhaps at breakfast or with a cup of coffee or tea can help you focus and start your day with a positive mindset.
“It’s not the load that breaks you down, it’s the way you carry it”
You may have a lot of responsibilities and work in a fast paced, stressful environment. You may feel so unhappy and trapped at work that you are feeling overwhelmed. Or, like so many people, you may be struggling to juggle the demands of work along with the rest of your life. If stress is playing a role in how happy you feel, then you need to make sure to incorporate healthy practices into your day. As we all know, stress can wreak havoc on our physical and emotional health, business and personal relationships, and overall ability to work to our best in all aspects of our lives. Stress can be a real happiness killer, but there are simple things that you can do to reduce the power it has over you at work.
Tips for reducing stress:
Move your body more! Research shows that even a few short bursts of exercise has a positive effect on both physical and emotional well-being. Take a 10 minute walk at lunch. Park your car further away than usual. Take the stairs when you can, and get up and stretch at every opportunity. Schedule a short break for exercise into your calendar, just like you would a meeting. Taking care of yourself first will make you more productive and happy.
Eat right! Pack a healthy lunch, drink plenty of water, and stay away from junk food. Fueling your body with healthy nutrition and hydration will help you feel better throughout your work day. Trust me. You may think that just one donut or cookie will make you feel happy, but you’ll probably end up feeling sluggish and grumpy later in the day.
Breathe! Bring a pair of headphones and use one of the many free meditation apps available for download. I like the free Stop, Breathe and Think app, but there are many to choose from. Taking just 5 minutes to bring your mind into the present moment allows you to feel clear-headed and relaxed. Meditation is called a “practice” for good reason. Be kind to yourself and keep trying. Over time you will be amazed at the difference a few minutes of focused breathing can have on the rest of your day.
Sleep! Make sure you are getting enough sleep. The CDC recommends that adults get 7-8 hours every night.
“Whatever you do, do it well”
Identify your skills and talents and use them daily. Always try to put your best effort forward. Doing this allows for a greater sense of purpose and accomplishment. If you find certain job responsibilities less than exciting, incorporate ways to make work more meaningful so that you can take more pleasure from your day. Take time to set some short and long term goals for yourself at work. Identify the steps needed to accomplish them. Also, think about how you can use your skills to make someone else’s work-day better. Reaching out to others with kindness, a warm gesture, or offer of help is a wonderful way to brighten your day. Approaching your work day by focusing on your strengths may be the key to your new perspective.
“Kill them with kindness”
Find compassion for others and nurture your personal and business relationships. Sometimes we are faced with difficult co-workers, patients, clients and bosses who just rub us the wrong way. This makes work extra challenging. Consider a new perspective where you look at that person. That individual has their own story and set of circumstances that may be contributing to their difficult behavior. It probably has nothing to do with you.
Finding compassion for what might drive someone’s behavior allows us to see that person from a different perspective. This gives us a more productive position for how to work with them. This doesn’t mean that rude or inappropriate behavior is ok and should always be tolerated. However, you may find that having this mental approach allows you to take fewer things personally. You may have a more thoughtful approach for how to engage with this person in the workplace in a more positive way. Challenge yourself by finding a way to brighten that person’s mood or improve their day. You’ll be amazed at the positive effect it will have on you as well.
A new perspective:
Being a happy person has nothing to do with how much money you make, how attractive you are or what status you have reached at work and in society. The happiest individuals are regular people who have successfully incorporated many of these habits into every aspect of who they are. They have a positive and grateful mindset, manage stress in healthy ways, nurture their relationships, and do things to help others. It is true, that sometimes we end up in work environments that do not suit us and it is necessary to make a change. However it is possible, by choosing to make personal changes in your daily habits, that you can improve your happiness greatly at work and in all areas of your life.
