A reporter recently asked me what advice I would give someone who was in a job they didn’t love.
Her specific question was “How can an employee love their job when they’re struggling to even like it? How can they go from “This isn’t what I want” to “I love this job!”
Maybe you’re in a job or career that isn’t an ideal fit for you. It’s not tapping into your passion, your natural strengths or your who you are deep down.
Or you might be one of millions who like what they do, but there’s still something missing.
What do you do?
If you’d like to know what I told the reporter, here’s a synopsis of what I said and later put in an e-mail to her:
Barbara,
As a former psychotherapist who now coaches and mentors clients for life and career transformation, here are three insights into your question. Here’s what I would tell a client in the situation you describe:
1) Quit trying to love your job.
You can’t make yourself love a job you don’t love. If you focus on trying to love a job you don’t, you’re going to lose that battle. How do you make yourself love what you don’t love?
Why not choose more realistic goals? Here are four to consider:
* Focus on what you like about the job. Not what you love about the job, but what you like. If you can’t identify anything you like about your job, you don’t have a job problem; you have a mindset problem. Change your mindset.
* Focus on your commitment to doing your best work.
You can do this, even in a job you don’t love. When you give your best, better things will come your way. We live in an abundant Universe, full of opportunities. Don’t listen to everyone around you saying how hard times are, how limited jobs are.
Do you best (in your “less than best” circumstance) and you will be planting seeds that will grow opportunities for you.
* Focus on what skills you can improve on your current job.
* Take on new responsibilities that will make you more valuable for a better job.
You can set these four commitments as goals that are achievable. Trying to love a job you don’t love isn’t achievable.
2) View your current job a stepping stone to a better position, not a permanent position.
If you dislike your job, you might feel stuck in it. When we feel stuck, we can easily think our situation is never ending. Remind yourself the job is merely a stepping stone; that mindset will generate creative energy to land a better job.
3) The Key To Getting A Better Job Is To Give Your Current Job The Best You Have.
Consider this: Why would someone offer you a better job/career if you don’t give your best in your current job?” Hiring managers want to make offers to those who are at the top of their game. So, what can you do now to bring more of yourself into your work?
Here’s a tip: Every day, write down three things you did or experienced at work that made you feel good. Maybe you received a compliment from a colleague. Or you finished a report before the deadline. Write down three things, even small things. The key is that each thing makes you feel good on some level as you remember it.
You are the captain of your own ship when it comes to your career satisfaction and success. Give your current job your best effort and your best self and in time your ship will be sailing into a new port.
These are just a few insights and strategies to go from a job or career you don’t want to being in a job or career you’re excited about.
We spend a lot of our lives at work. Why not spend it doing what you love?
If I can help you in any way, give me a call at 678-778-9012 or use the “Contact Alan” button on the top right hand of this page.
Categorized in: Career Success
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