Bored with your job?
By Kristie Kellahan | smh.com.au | 26 April
Turning up to work is becoming a bit of a chore. Your job just isn't challenging you and opportunities to climb the corporate ladder aren't exactly falling in your lap. What's the best way to get motivated again?
Career experts say if getting through your working day feels like wading through porridge, trying a new approach can help.
Everything in moderation
It sounds like odd logic but perhaps the best way to enhance your career is to stop thinking about it so much. "Sometimes we end up making our lives about our job," says recruitment expert Julia Ross. "That's the wrong way around: it should be that our jobs help enhance our lives, either because we're doing what we enjoy and feel good about or because they bring us financial security, or a little of both."
Ross says there's nothing wrong with putting in extra hours from time to time. But if you find yourself sacrificing social life, family or even sanity for your job, it's time to take a serious look at your priorities.
"Seek to 'right-size' your working hours and put the job back in its proper place within your life," she says. "If the company is expected to be your life, maybe it's time to find a new company."
Whatever makes you happy
"Think of a time you felt really happy at work," says psychotherapist Jackie Furey, the director of consulting group Bedrooms to Boardrooms. "What's changed and is it necessarily something happening at work or are you transferring the unhappiness from a personal situation?"
To get a clearer picture of the elements that contribute to your job satisfaction, Furey recommends this simple exercise. "If you woke up tomorrow feeling energised - don't worry about how - what would be different? Would it be more pay, more leisure time, more respect from the boss?"
This exercise helps us to define our values. A truly rewarding and flourishing career is only possible when it satisfies your most important values.
Start to believe that you are worthy of having your dream job in every respect and you'll start to "cherry-pick" the best offers.
"We all hold an invisible sign around our necks indicating whether we believe we're worthy of being spent on or saved on," Furey says. "Be willing to project the message you are entitled to be spent on whether you feel like it or not. Acting as if it's true can still have a profound effect on the way others perceive you."
No more boredom
A lot of people get bored with their jobs. They no longer find the job challenging or find the daily routine has become incredibly uninteresting.
Julia Ross says you can combat job boredom in several ways. "Spice up your current position by asking for different assignments or tasks," she says. "Consider a job change within the same company, either by applying for a new position internally or talking to your boss about possible role rotations."
Consider changing careers altogether. "People do it all the time, even going back to school if need be to pursue something they find more rewarding," she says. "Contrary to popular belief, jobs shouldn't be something you just have to suffer through and not enjoy. The happier you are with your job, the happier you generally will be with life."
No more toxic waste
One of the quickest ways to sap your joy at work is to become mired in messy office politics. "Stay right out of it if you want to protect yourself and respect yourself," Furey says.
You don't have to be rude and dismissive to the office gossips. On the contrary, use a "wall of niceness" to send a clear message that you won't engage. "It takes a mature person to recognise what's happening and step out of it, step around it but never step in it."
Better still, Furey says this attitude can have a great effect on your career. "Those with a mature outlook who demonstrate they don't want to be part of silly games will be rewarded ..."
Act now
Dina Zavrski-Makaric from advisory Challenging Directions, an expert on change management and human resources, says it's important to act as soon as you feel discomfort or discontent. "The longer we stay in a rut, the more difficult it is to get out of it," she says.
It's a good idea to take stock of what we are good at and to assess our gifts and talents. "Some feedback from trusted colleagues, friends and family is really valuable here, because they'll often see things about us that are hidden from our awareness or that we take for granted," she says.
To be on the path of success it's important to be working in a role where your talents are utilised. "You may come to realise that that is too difficult to do in your current job, in which case looking for a new one may be a better solution and a more realistic path to success."
First published by Smh.com.au on April 26 2008
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