All my coaching career, I have loved my work and believed I was using my special talents. I still do. I also have to face reality that nearly 1/2 of the adult working population do not LOVE their work. If you are in this category, I have some good news: To enjoy your life and job, you do not need to love your work.
In his book, “The Truth about Employee Engagement”, Patrick Lencioni has determined that to be happy in our job, we need to incorporate these three elements into our daily experience:
#1: Know your work and input is important: In 1959, NASA announced the selection of the first seven astronauts. The team struggled in the beginning, but came together when they were allowed to give comments and suggestions in areas like capsule design.
#2: Understand your unique set of talents and abilities and how they fit into the overall performance of the team.
#3: Measure progress: Maintain a system that details your professional development goals and measures your progress daily. We need to have a perpetual sense of what we are accomplishing.
Summing it up, to enjoy our time at work, we need to know its importance, understand and appreciate what we bring to the table, and measure our progress. Next, enjoy our lives!
