12 Kickass Ways to Love Your Job []

You could also face a number of challenges in your workplace such as:

• Little balance between personal life and work commitments
• Little fulfilment
• Long hours and tight deadlines
• Conflicting demands on your time and loyalty
• Strained relationships with the important people in your life
• Lack of any say at work
• Internal politics and a rigid company structure
• Bullying within the workplace
• Few promotional opportunities

So just how do you cope?

At the end of the day, you want to be involved in fulfilling, rewarding and enjoyable, get recognition and promotion for your efforts, and be appreciated for the work you do.

But at the same time, want a balanced life with time for the things you really want to do with a full and interesting social life. Of course you want to have clarity about your career, job duties and you want to continue to be healthy, fit and stress free.

It seems a lot to ask for – and the key for resolving these seemingly conflicting challenges is to get clear about just how much you love the work you do?

Is what you do for work make you jump out of bed every morning?

Or would you rather be doing something else?

No matter how good things are in other parts of your life such as family, social life and relationships, work is a major part of your life, and not to be neglected.

Since for now you have chosen to be in the job you are in, it is up to you for the time being to make the most of what you do. Of course in the long term, you can either change your job or even embark on a new career. But for now, you can get to love more of what you do right now.

Assuming that in the short term you are not able to change jobs, there are a number of things you can do to begin enjoying more of what you currently do.

Ask yourself – is it the job or is it you?

And what can you do to make your current work more enjoyable?

Stop acting the victim. YOU are responsible for your life and if you can’t immediately change the job you are in, then it is up to you to make the most of it.

Here are 12 tips to enjoy more your current job.

1. Get motivated to face the day

On the way to your workplace, think of how the work you have allows you to have your life outside of it, such as a great social life. A positive attitude will make the day more pleasant and productive.

2. Keep your work in perspective

You can only do the best you can in each situation. Look beyond yourself and your work, and consider the bigger picture. Do some voluntary work to gain a broader outlook. Find a way to contribute to society in general.

3. You are more than your work

Do not have your identity too strongly tied to the job you do. Give up thinking that your work life “should” be a certain way. Such expectations of what you were supposed to be, as set by your parents and teachers, stop you from enjoying what you currently do.

4. Plan your time and create a to-do list

In this list, include long term projects as well as the more imminent things that need doing.

Prioritise your to-do list – do the most important things first. When performing any task, ask yourself – is this the best use of my time? Schedule in enough time for your studies etc.

5. Concentrate on the task at hand

Do not let yourself be distracted by worrying about all the other things to be done or losing energy over the undesirable situation you find yourself in. Stay in the moment.

Be ruthless and take care of a task before it gets on a possible procrastination list. For example, sort your morning post immediately in one go – open it, file it, act on it or bin it there and then.

6. Be clear about what’s expected of you

Clarify immediately, any time you are not sure or where you are faced with conflicting demands. The more clear and upfront you are with your manager and the other people you work with, the better it will be for you in the long term.

7. Delegate wherever appropriate

Decide if there is anything that can be delegated, or that more fairly belongs to someone else’s work load. Always remember the “3D” rule – do it, dump it or delegate it – never handle a piece of paper twice.

8. Have regular breaks

Get away from your normal workplace even if only for five minutes. Try taking a break from the laptop, emails and do leave the mobile behind. Make sure that you do have that lunch break – it is not just for food but also for fresh air and a mental break.

No matter how challenging the work gets or how demanding your bosses become, it, at the end of the day it is only a job and you are much more than that. In years to come, you will look back and wonder what the fuss was.

Eat a healthy lunch and if you must snack, make sure it is healthy too – an apple rather than a bag of crisps. Look for ways of energising yourself, other than from adrenaline and caffeine.


 9. Learn to relax                                                                                        

No matter how challenging the work gets or how demanding your bosses become, it, at the end of the day it is only a job and you are much more than that. In years to come, you will look back and wonder what the fuss was.                                                                                            

10. Make your workplace more pleasant

Contribute towards creating a pleasant work environment. Do not gossip in the office as it just creates negativity all around. Do not listen to any gossip either. Minimise your time with people that you do not resonate with or like.

Learn to have more fun at work. Laugh more and chill out. Perform with a more fun orientated approach.

11. Review your day before you leave for home

Look at what worked well, and what could be improved the next day. If you feel satisfied with the day’s work, then why not reward yourself later that day. You deserve it.

12. Switch off once you leave work

You are already at work a third of your time, so do not continue to keep it buzzing in your head during your supposed free time. Mentally say good bye to your work space the moment you leave for home.

See your work as a game. Life is meant to be fun and if you are going to spend a third of it at work, you might as well enjoy the game.

Enjoy your work – and if it comes down to it, you can always find something better in the medium to long term.

8 of the Greatest Commencement Quotes From Business Leaders

Time is precious.

Image credit: L.A. Cicero | Stanford News

“Your time is limited, so don't waste it living someone else's life. Don't be trapped by dogma. ... Don't let the noise of others' opinions drown out your own inner voice. And, most important, have the courage to follow your heart and intuition. They somehow already know what you truly want to become.”
-- Steve Jobs, Stanford University, 2005

Late Apple CEO Steve Jobs gave one of the most memorable commencement addresses at Stanford University’s graduation in 2005, a year after he’d been diagnosed with pancreatic cancer. Jobs spoke frankly of his being adopted, being fired from Apple in 1985, and death -- which he said was a “gift” in its ability to make time count.

Related: Inspirational Advice From 10 Successful Leaders

Be too legit to quit.

Image credit: UWTV | Youtube

“Be hard core. … Hard core means tenacious. Hard core means long-term. Hard core means determined. I don't care what you do, you're going to have to be patient and industrious and really stay after things. … You're going to have to be determined and long-term."
-- Steve Ballmer, University of Washington, 2014

Steve Ballmer is well-known for his over-the-top enthusiasm during speeches. At the 2014 graduation at University of Washington, the L.A. Clippers owner and former longtime Microsoft CEO told the graduates that he, at 58-years-old, had no clear plan of what he was going to do next -- but that success was a long-term trip, not an overnighter.

It isn’t the first time Ballmer has urged a crowd to “be hard core,” with an overabundance of energy.

Related: 3 Life Lessons From Steve Ballmer's Rousing Graduation Speech

Find someone to love.

Image credit: University of Southern California | Facebook

“It took me a long time to be as brave in my personal life as I was in my professional life … to be brave in love means opening yourself up to the possibility of heartbreak.”
-- Mellody Hobson, University of Southern California, 2015

At the University of Southern California this year, Mellody Hobson, president of Ariel Investments and chairwoman on several boards, not only spurred students to find someone to be passionate about -- but also to expand their bandwidth of diversity by getting to know people with whom they have seemingly nothing in common.

Related link: 30 Inspirational Quotes for Entrepreneurs (Infographic) 

On the other side of failure is clarity.

Image credit: Team Coco | Youtube

"There are few things more liberating in life than having your worst fear realized. … It’s not easy, but your perceived failure can become a catalyst for profound reinvention. … Whether you fear it or not, disappointment will come. The beauty is that through disappointment you can gain clarity, and with clarity comes conviction and true originality."
-- Conan O’Brien, Dartmouth University, 2011

The comedian and TV personality Conan O’Brien spoke about his very public failure in 2010 when he was given NBC’s Tonight Show hosting gig (that once belonged to Jay Leno) only to be forced out of the role. He spent the following year “adrift,” he admitted, trying on new career moves such as doing stand up and touring on the road. The time, he said, yielded the most rewarding year of his career.

Related: 38 of the Most Inspirational Leadership Quotes

Careers are rarely clear-cut, upward trajectories.

Image credit: Harvard Business School | Youtube

“[Careers are] not a ladder; they’re a jungle gym … look for opportunities, look for growth, look for impact, look for mission. Move sideways, move down, move on, move off. Build your skills, not your résumé. Evaluate what you can do, not the title they’re going to give you. Do real work...and don’t expect a direct climb.”
-- Sheryl Sandberg, Harvard Business School, 2012

In her speech to graduates, Facebook COO Sheryl Sandberg spoke about her travails finding a job after graduating Harvard Business School and moving to Silicon Valley in 2001. At the time, Sandberg had been offered a job at Google, which she expressed to its CEO-at-the-time, Eric Schmidt, didn’t meet her job requirements. His response to her: “When companies are growing quickly,” said Schmidt, “careers take care of themselves.”

Related Link: Sheryl Sandberg's Advice to Grads: Banish Self-Doubt, Dream Bigger and Lean In, Always

Get started already.

Image credit: Dominick Reuter | MIT News

“Stop thinking about your dream, act on it. There are 30,000 days in your life. … There are no warm-ups, no practice rounds, no reset buttons. Your biggest risk isn't failing, it's getting too comfortable. ... Instead of trying to make your life perfect, give yourself the freedom to make it an adventure, and go ever upward.”
-- Drew Houston, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, 2013

Dropbox CEO Drew Houston returned to his alma mater to encourage graduates to become obsessed with something that matters to them -- and get started immediately. In building Dropbox, reportedly valued at $10 billion in 2014, Houston shared that his wins have been as magnificent as his failures.

Related Link: Dropbox CEO Gives Graduates His Cheat Sheet for Success

Punching a time clock is not the way to change the world.

Image credit: UMN College of Science and Engineering | Youtube

"At the end of the day, you can decide whether you want to be an employee with a great attendance record, getting promoted to ever better titles and working on interesting projects or whether you want to attempt to dosomething spectacular. This be or do should be a question you never stop asking yourself for the next 20 years and beyond."
-- Steve Blank, University of Minnesota, 2013

Silicon Valley entrepreneur Steve Blank spoke to graduates of his realization that he wanted to do more than just be a “cog” after leaving the military as a youth and joining a big tech company. At the time, his friends working at startups were living in garages and were free to pursue their own ideas and cultivate their talents -- he made his choice and joined them.

Related Link: Steve Blank: 'Entrepreneurship is a Calling, Not a Job.'

Doing what you love creates resilience.

Image credit: University of Michigan | Youtube

“When you’re doing what you love to do, you become resilient, because that’s the habit you create for yourself. You create a habit of taking chances on yourself and making bold choices in service to doing what you love.”
-- Dick Costolo, University of Michigan, 2013  

At the top of his humor-filled address, Twitter CEO Dick Costolotweeted -- naturally -- then went on to warn graduates about there being no script for how careers unfold. He used himself as an example: As a graduate of University of Michigan, Costolo moved to Chicago to pursue improv comedy -- what many might consider a life of artistic poverty. While he didn’t remain in improv, he integrated valuable lessons that lead him to where he is now.

Related link: Twitter's Jack Dorsey Defends CEO Dick Costolo in Massive Tweetstorm

Bonus: Reality is harsh.

NYU | Tisch School of the Arts | Vimeo

“You made it and you’re f---ed.”
-- Robert DeNiro, New York University’s Tisch School of the Arts, 2015

Please don’t sugar coat the message, OK? Thanks.

Bad career advice: Do what you love

By

I found this articles very interesting and touching because since the time l have been reading, writing about Career stuff l never come across anyone that says differently like Penelope and this catches my attention to hear of his opinion but at the end of my reading l was able to have a new thought over his own opinion, lets read on 

  One of the worst pieces of career advice that I bet each of you has not only gotten but given is to “do what you love.”

Forget that. It’s absurd. I have been writing since before I even knew how to write – when I was a preschooler I dictated my writing to my dad. And you might not be in preschool, but if you are in touch with who you are, you are doing what you love, no matter what, because you love it.

So it’s preposterous that we need to get paid to do what we love because we do that stuff anyway. So you will say, “But look. Now you are getting paid to do what you love. You are so lucky.” But it’s not true. We are each multifaceted, multilayered, complicated people, and if you are reading this blog, you probably devote a large part of your life to learning about yourself and you know it’s a process. None of us loves just one thing.

I am a writer, but I love sex more than I love writing. And I am not getting paid for sex. In fact, as you might imagine, my sex life is really tanking right now. But I don’t sit up at night thinking, should I do writing or sex? Because career decisions are not decisions about “what do I love most?” Career decisions are about what kind of life do I want to set up for myself?

So how could you possibly pick one thing you love to do? And what would be the point?

The world reveals to you all that you love by what you spend time on. Try stuff. If you like it, you’ll go back to it. I just tried Pilates last month. I didn’t want to try, but a friend said she loved the teacher, so I went. I loved it. I have taken it three times a week ever since. And it’s changed me. I stand up straighter. (I’d also have better sex, if I were having it. The Pilates world should advertise more that it improves your sex life: Totally untapped market.)

Often, the thing we should do for our career is something we would only do if we were getting a reward. If you tell yourself that your job has to be something you’d do even if you didn’t get paid, you’ll be looking for a long time. Maybe forever. So why set that standard? The reward for doing a job is contributing to something larger than you are, participating in society, and being valued in the form of money.

The pressure we feel to find a perfect career is insane. And, given that people are trying to find it before they are thirty, in order to avoid both a quarterlife crisis and a biological-clock crisis, the pressure is enough to push people over the edge. Which is why one of thehighest risk times for depression in life is in one’s early twenties when people realize how totally impossible it is to simply “do what you love.”

Here’s some practical advice: Do not what you love; do what you are. It’s how I chose my career. I bought the book with that title – maybe my favorite career book of all time – and I took the quickie version of the Myers-Briggs test. The book gave me a list of my strengths, and a list of jobs where I would likely succeed based on those strengths.

Relationships make your life great, not jobs. But a job can ruin your life – make you feel out of control in terms of your time or your ability to accomplish goals – but no job will make your life complete. It’s a myth mostly propagated by people who tell you to do what you love. Doing what you love will make you feel fulfilled. But you don’t need to get paid for it.

A job can save your life, though. If you are lost, and lonely, and wondering how you’ll ever find your way in this world. Take a job. Any job. Because structure, and regular contact with regular people, and a method of contributing to a larger group are all things that help us recalibrate ourselves.

So if you are overwhelmed with the task of “doing what you love” you should recognize that you are totally normal, and maybe you should just forget it. Just do something that caters to your strengths. Do anything.

And if you are so overwhelmed that you feel depression coming on, consider that a job might save you. Take one. Doing work and being valued in the community is important. For better or worse, we value people with money. Earn some. Doing work you love is not so important. We value love in relationships. Make some.

TOP 10 SIGNS YOU’RE UNHAPPY AT WORK

How do you know that you’re unhappy at work? That something is not right and that it’s time to either make some changes at work or move on to a new job?

In my work, I talk to a lot of people who are not happy with their jobs. Here are the top ten symptoms of unhappiness at work that I’ve observed. How many apply to you?

1: You procrastinate
You really, honestly try to get some work done. But somehow you never really get around to it. Or you only do it at the last possible moment and then only do a half-baked effort.

Many people view procrastination as a personal weakness. To me, it’s one of the strongest warning signs of unhappiness at work.

2: You spend Sunday night worrying about Monday morning
“I never sleep on Sunday night very well because I’m worried about going to work on Monday morning. My job is very stressful and you kind of have to gear up for Monday and getting back into that.” (source)

One of the worst things about being unhappy at work is that the unhappiness bleeds over into your free time. If you’ve had a lousy day at work, it’s difficult to go home and have a great evening. If your week sucked, it’s hard to have a fun, relaxed, carefree weekend.

3: You’re really competitive about salary and titles
You don’t like the job itself, so you focus much more on salary and perks. Knowing that someone in a similar position is paid more than you, or is promoted when you’re not, really eats at you.

When we’re unhappy at work we get a lot more competitive, for one simple reason: When work doesn’t give us happiness and enjoyment we want to getsomething else out of it. And what else is there but compensation and promotions.

4: You don’t feel like helping co-workers
Your colleagues may be struggling. But you don’t really feel like lending a hand. Why should you?

One very interesting psychological study started by putting subjects in either a good mood or a bad mood. They were then asked to go down the hall to another room where the experiment would continue. In the hallway the real experiment took place – the subjects passed a man holding a big box struggling to open a door. Would the subject help that person? The experiment showed, that when we’re in a bad mood, we’re much less likely to help others.

5: Work days feel looooong
The first thing you do in the morning, is calculate the number of hours until you can go home.

Ironically, this makes the work day feel even longer.

6: You have no friends at work
Friends at work? They’re mostly all jerks anyway.

Gallup have found in their studies of workplace engagement, that one of the strongest factors that predict happiness at work is having at least one close friend at work.

7: You don’t care. About anything.
Things can go well or they can go badly for your workplace. Either way, you don’t really give a damn.

When you’re unhappy, you care mostly about yourself and not so much about the workplace.

8: Small things bug you
Small annoyances bug you out of all proportion. Like someone taking up too much space in the parking lot, someone taking the last coffee without brewing a new pot or someone talking too loudly in the next cubicle.

When you’re unhappy you have much thinner skin and a shorter fuse. It takes a lot less to annoy you.

9: You’re suspicious of other people’s motives
No matter what people do, your fist thought is “what are they up to?” Good or bad, big or small, all decisions and actions made by your co-workers and managers are seen in this light.

Studies show that we’re also more suspicious of others when we’re unhappy.

10: Physical symptoms
You suffer from insomnia, headaches, low energy, muscle tension and/or other physical symptoms.

Studies show that when you’re unhappy at work you’re more prone to experience these physical stress symptoms.

Your take

How many of these apply to you in your current job? Did I leave any important symptoms of workplace unhappiness out? Please write a comment. I’d really like to know your take!

STEVE JOB