How to fall back in love with your job?

Let’s face it, at times we all think about leaving our job after a particular bad day, week or month. However, sometimes there are very good reasons to actually stay in a role such as; your tenure has been quite short and you need to show some loyalty on your resume, you know that there will be great career opportunities but you just have to do your time, you have too many other things going on outside of work and just need some security in at least one part of your life.

Whatever the reason, that you are feeling disillusioned about your current job, here are some tips to help you fall back in love with your job all over again.

1. Write a list of the pros and cons of your role

Writing a list of ‘pros’ will help you remember the reasons why you accepted this job in the first place.  Then take time to examine the list of ‘cons’ or what frustrates you about your current role.  Think about which of these factors you could possibly change, or which could be ‘fixed’.  By speaking with your manager or HR you may be able to make some changes to make your role more fulfilling, such as; re-designing your role responsibilities, getting involved in some projects to expand your role, or possibly delegating some menial tasks to someone more junior in your team.   Often employees are afraid to speak up when they are unhappy, but in the current climate where we have a candidate’s market, employers may be willing to make some changes to keep their best staff.

2. Get to know your colleagues better

Covid-19 has really changed company cultures with many employees still choosing to work from home and managers being to demand staff to return to the office full-time.  As a result, company culture has been disintegrated in many companies with big, beautiful empty offices and everyone scurrying home as soon as their meetings are over. As a result, staff are feeling disconnected from their colleagues and isolated. If this is you, consider how you can organise some social functions in your team to help build relationships again in your team.

3. Choose a positive attitude

It is very easy to become negative about work if you are surrounded by people making negative comments and engaging in nasty office gossip.  Avoid these people and make a conscious effort to come to work each day with a positive attitude.  You may find that people also react to you in a more positive way and that overall you will get greater satisfaction from your work.

4. Think about ways you can make your work more meaningful

Often clients think they need to change career to find work that they are passionate about, however, it is also possible to transfer your passions to your current role.  For example, if you are someone who gets satisfaction from helping and connecting people, perhaps you can offer to be a ‘buddy’ to any new people joining the team or take the time to mentor a junior staff member.  For those who are community-minded, think about organising a team event for your work colleagues that raises money for your favourite charity and provides you with personal satisfaction in the process.   For those who are health and fitness minded, perhaps you can organise a lunchtime running group or offer to run a yoga/mindfulness session before work.  Think of opportunities where you can bring your passions to your work rather than trying to find a new career that matches your passions.

5. Focus on your career goals rather than your job

Think about what you are there for – what experience do you need to gain, the skills you need to develop and the relationships you need to foster to get you to your end goal.  This will keep you focused on the potential career opportunities whether they are internal or external to the organisation.

6. Learn something new

Personal growth is a great way to feel better about yourself so look for opportunities to attend personal development courses through work, or invest in a course outside of work to upskill in an area you are interested in.  Learning something new will get your brain stimulated again, increase your confidence and expand your skill set.  Check out online learning platforms such as LinkedIn Learning, Udemy, Coursera, CreativeLive or Masterclass all have some great courses across multiple categories and industries that can be taken for business or pleasure.

7. Continue to celebrate and document your achievements

Think about the skills you have gained and the wins that you have had.  Remember to document these on an ongoing basis to remind yourself of how much you have achieved even when you have your bad days.

There are ways to fall back in love with your job all over again, but it takes effort and some thought. Go out and have fun with it!!