Find your Zen at Work: 5 ways to love your job again

A job is similar to a human’s relationship with each other. At first glance and a few years, one might feel invested in the said job. However, if not taken care of properly, there is a possibility that the passion might burn out, leaving the person with feelings such as stagnation to the point of hatred for extreme cases. You need to find your zen at work.

Such a feeling is nothing out of the ordinary, as many people are having a similar struggle. According to the poll by Gallup in 2017, at least 85% of the people do not like their jobs. Having negative feelings on one’s job can result in extreme decision-making that might lead to serious consequences, such as quitting the job.

However, what if you end up regretting the decision? To prevent such cases, it is best for you to do a self-reflection and rediscover the positive aspects of the job you used to be fond of. To Find your Zen at Work. For those who are having difficulties with the self-reflection, we have a guide you can try and modify according to the person’s needs.

Possible Reasons Why You “Hate” Your Job

In order to rediscover the burning passion for the job, it is necessary for one to understand why passion is gone in the first place. Finding the root of the problem can help a person solve the problem found at work. Here are some possible reasons why a job is “hated.”

Boredom

When one is exposed to a new working environment, the person is faced with new challenge. He is supposed to adjust with the new workflow, new coworkers, new tasks, and many more new things. Adapting to an alien concept might be hard and take some time, but that is where the challenge lies.

However, everything can change when you have experienced the challenge many time throughout the year. After all, you are already accustomed to the routine to the point where the body can move by itself. Although the tasks are not the same, they have similar nature you are familiar with. Eventually, the challenge experienced at the beginning becomes a routine.

When you are experiencing such feelings described above, there is a high chance of your getting bored with the daily routine. Although routine is not a bad thing, it can also become the one of the sources of boredom. The lacking challenge and monotony are some of the factors that can lead to boredom. The boredom then can lead to negative results such as the lack of motivation and maximum performance at work. Seeing how boredom can lead to an extremely negative result, it is not a surprise how it can become a factor of one’s hatred for a job.

Not your passion

Steve Jobs once said that “the only way to do great work is to love what you do,” and there is some truth to his words. If you always feel like you do not like your work and feel happy doing your tasks, there is a chance that your job is not your passion.

Although we might sound as if we exaggerate, passion does play a certain role in our job. An appropriate amount of passion within one’s work can result in a positive outcome such as happier working days and a higher feeling of satisfaction for the job.

Despite the feeling of boredom and stagnation, most people would have started their jobs with a fiery passion that will stay for a while. But when the person has no passion in the first place, he will struggle at dominating the tasks no matter how long time passes by. How can there be a fiery passion when there is no spark in the first place?

Feeling left out and underappreciated

Another possible reason why the spark for your job is gone is due to the lack of appreciation from both supervisors and coworkers. Appreciation is one of the factors that drive employees to do their best. Fuel is needed to keep the spark from dying, and appreciation from the supervisor is one of the possible fuels to keep employees’ interest in a job.

A similar concept can also be said with coworkers. The relationship among coworkers can affect the workplace both in positive and negative ways. It can be positive when the coworkers are able to give comfort space to each other. It can also be negative when friendship distracts work performance. As the researcher said, “workplace friends influence performance over and above purely instrumental or pure friendship-based relationships.”

Seeing “greener grass”

One of the most common reasons why some people do not like their job is the benefits they receive from the company. Many employees think that the tasks they do at work are not balanced with the benefits given by the company. Such feelings can also spark when an employee sees another company’s employee with better incentives despite the similar tasks the two have.

Although it sounds like a trivial matter for some, it can actually lead to negative feelings for the job. As the survey stated, the “lack of benefits” can result in employees not giving their best for their job. Eventually, you will no longer feel anything but despise and other negative emotions for your job, even if you used to love it before. All due to the feeling of lacking benefit from the company.

How to Love Your Job

There is only one answer if you are having the feelings above: you are starting not to like your job. Before making any rash decisions that can affect your future, let us try to rekindle the fiery working passion that used to exist before. Here are some things you can do to help you see your job in a more positive light and find your zen at work:

Gratitude List

As the name implies, a gratitude list is a simple list of the things you are grateful for regarding your job. It has been proven that gratitude is one of the factors that can greatly aid a person to feel happy on their workplace. Gratitude can make a workplace positive and more humane overall.

The things written on the list do not have things related to your company only. While It’s fine to write such a thing, the aim of a gratitude list is to list the things that make you happy at work, no matter how “insignificant” it looks; as long as it makes you happy. So, it is fine to write things such as the sun that are shining on your office desk, how a coworker always brings a cup of coffee to you every day, and so on. They might not be large-scale information that brings significant effect to the company, but they are the things that will make you smile brightly every day.

So if you feel like your job is burdensome, list the positive things you’ve encountered while working. When you feel that you can no longer go on, take out your list, and see the things that will make you smile. Although the list might not completely change your mind regarding your job, you’ll be able to see the positive side of it and find your zen at work.

Find a purpose

Another reason why our job becomes tiresome is because of how it is lacking a sense of purpose. A sense of purpose can help a person feel more fulfilled when it comes to their work.

You can find a purpose in the company’s vision. For example, you are in a company that offers writing services. Take out the company’s manual, read throughout its vision and mission, and pick the one that satisfies you the most.

If you are unable to find a purpose on the company’s vision and mission, you can create one by yourself. Start thinking about why you want to write, the reason why writing can contribute to society.

No matter what the purpose is, find one that suits you the most, where you feel happy when doing it. If you find a higher goal that can help you more focused on your job, you will see it more than a mere daily routine. Instead, you will see it as a calling and find your zen at work.

Create a goal with your supervisor

Creating a goal with the supervisor is a strategy that can help you tackle the felling of underappreciated and lack of challenge.

Creating a goal together with your supervisor can create a bridge between you and your supervisor. It is perfect for those who want to create a proper communication with the higher-ups, as two-way communication is one of the important aspects that can affect the mood of the workplace.

A goal can also help at creating a new challenge, as you are demanded to create something new and more revolutionary for the company. This is a great way to reignite the spark that is no longer there. After all, you’re creating something new that is outside your daily routine.

To make it even better, the two activities above can be done at the same time. You are killing three birds one with stone. One, you will be able to maintain communication with your supervisor. Two, you will be getting the feeling of excitement that has been long gone. Three, you might be able to love your job again. That’s not so bad, isn’t it?

Feedback from coworkers

Now that we have tackled the problem with the supervisor, it is time to focus on the relationship among the employees.

As stated before, it is best to create a positive relationship with fellow employees, as it can greatly impact the working environment. You can start creating a positive environment by initiating conversations with others. Once you feel like you have closed the distance, you are allowed to ask for feedback to prevent any unnecessary trouble and misunderstanding in the future.

If the feedback given is not exactly as expected, do not react negatively. Instead, ask your fellow coworkers what must be done to gain more favorable feedback. Doing such a thing will show them your effort of wanting to get closer to them and how you are trying your best to create a better working environment for everybody.

Although the relationship between you and your coworkers might not have a drastic change, you will never look the same again for them. Who knows, you might have a new relationship that you have never experienced before.

Reminiscence the good memories your job

When all the steps above cannot make you love your job again, it’s time to go down the memory lane. It is time to remember the original reason why you started this job. All the good things that happened during your working days.

Reminiscing all the positive things of your job can help you create a positive mindset. Being positive may sound cheesy, but just positive thinking and smiling are the main staples of a positive personal attitude. This step might not make you love your job, but it will make you hate it less.

Make Peace with Your Job

We hope the steps we have given above can help you make amends with your job. They will help you find your zen at work. Your job might not be perfect, but it is not something that cannot be seen from a new perspective. Changing your mindset can give a new light on your job and possibly your life too.

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