Are You Not Happy in Your Job? No Worries. Here Is a Solution

A number of employees seem to feel that they are getting their salary for being unhappy. To put it in plain language, they are not happy with their job. They begin their day by 6 or 7 AM and get ready for the so-called 9 to 5 grind. But this 9 to 5 official day is certainly a false statement because the official day of many of these employees starts much before 9 AM and ends much later than 5 PM. This means there is every reason these employees hate their job. But what is the remedy to come out of this rut?

In this context, the findings of a study are worth considering. The study says that on average, a child laughs 300 times during a day. On the contrary, an adult laughs only five times daily. But these unhappy employees may not laugh at all. Some of them may have forgotten to laugh also.

But is quitting the job the solution? You may feel scared even to think of taking this step. But you may not know that it is blissful not to have any job. 

The case of these employees reminds us of an anecdote told by Anthony DeMello, who is considered a spiritual author and mystic.

There was a trader who was selling camels and he was walking across the Desert of Sahara along with his slaves. When there was night, the group decided to stay at a particular place. The slaves had just nineteen pegs but there were 20 camels with them. When they asked their master, he asked them to just act as if they were tying the 20th camel also and told that the camel would stay put.

The next morning, when it was time to move, the slaves untied the camels and all the animals except the 20th camel started moving. In fact, the 20th camel refused to move even an inch from its place. When the slaves asked the master, he reminded them that they had to act as if they were untying the camel. Only then, the animal would move. They carried out this instruction and the 20th camel also started walking.  

 

Most of the employees think that if they quit their job, the decision will ruin their life. They cannot pay their bills and run their families. It is true they need money. Without money, they cannot live. But how to beat the monotony and eliminate the unhappiness from their lives? Here is a suggestion.

The suggestion is: HAVE A PASSION PROJECT.

If you have such a passion project and make it a point to pursue it daily either before heading to your workplace or after coming back, it will provide you the much-needed happiness. By taking every step related to this project, you will feel as if you have achieved something. Most importantly, it will save you from the burn-out you may be experiencing due to doing official tasks you hate the most. 

Experts have found out that such passion projects will improve your productivity at the workplace as well. 

Some of the examples of such passion projects are reading, skiing, hiking, painting, learning dancing, or music, or playing poker or bridge, In fact,  it can be anything. The best thing about such a passion project is that you will not feel any pressure in it. You need not prove yourself also. But it can do a world of good to you by destressing you and by helping you remain happy.  

How to manage deadlines that cause high stress?

If you are an employee who faces frequent stress-causing deadlines or if you run a company that has to operate within strict deadlines, it is high time you learn to manage such situations. If you don't, it will turn to be a perilous mistake because you are likely to fall prey to the impact of such stress. Remember that the future is headed towards more stress-causing situations. The commercial landscape is changing fast, thanks to the very high competition that prevails in every field. Experts suggest that you should create productivity routines and practice them consistently and persistently so that they become your second nature. These productivity routines help in developing strong habits. Once you develop these habits, you can easily tackle any type of situation. More than anything, you will even start enjoying such stress-causing deadline situations.

But you may ask "where is the time to develop these strong habits?" There may be intermittent periods when you will have moderate work or not-so-stressful situations. You should use these periods for creating productivity routines and cultivating strong habits. In fact, if your desire to learn the ways to manage stress-causing deadlines is strong, you will be able to find time for this.

One of the most important habits you should develop is to use your time wisely. Experts strongly advise that the habit of managing time wisely will be of great use. Once you develop this habit, you will have time for putting in place appropriate systems for easily tackling even strict deadlines. 

Let us look at how high-performing athletes create productivity routines for managing their stress. If you observe these folks, you will find that they follow certain routines for practicing. It is their meticulous adherence to routines for practicing that helps them manage their pressure when they take part in big events. A classic example is that of Nathan Chen, the American skater, who competed in the Olympics when he was just 18. Did he face pressure? Yes. He did but it was a very minor one. What helped him in managing the pressure? The answer is that he had always been sticking to his routine and practicing incessantly.

In short, if you create productivity routines, keep practicing consistently and persistently, and develop the right habits such as prioritizing wisely and managing your time judiciously and make them your second nature, you will not feel the pressure even during stressful situations. 

Never Underestimate Yourself

That there are a number of people who do not realize their own potential is a bitter fact. You may also belong to this group. Though there may be many reasons for this, the foremost among them is that you are afraid of failure. Ironically, there are people who are afraid of success as well. But regardless of these reasons, the fact remains that you are not able to realize your potential because you do not try anything new and you do not want to take risks. Read this sentence once again. YOU ARE NOT ABLE TO REALIZE YOUR POTENTIAL BECAUSE YOU DO NOT TRY ANYTHING NEW AND DO NOT WANT TO TAKE RISKS. You tread along the same path day in and day out. You are neither willing nor ready to break your stereotyped mindset, effect a change in what you do, how you think, or how you look at things. That is the reason you are not able to spot your potential, not to speak of putting your skills to use optimally. What does this situation lead to? Obviously, the biggest "Catch 22" is you will be underestimating yourself. But how to overcome this attitude of underestimating yourself? Here are a few suggestions.

1. Remember that you have been hired by your employers because you have some of the skills they require. But since you have been using these skills as a routine, you tend to forget that you have them with you. Therefore, while putting your skills to use, do not act like a "robot." Put your heart and soul into the tasks. Try to find if there are smarter ways to work. Provide insights to your peers and supervisors. This is how those with self-confidence act.

2. Read a lot. It is not that you should read whatever you lay hands on. Remember that some of the most successful titans like Warren Buffett and Bill Gates are voracious readers. It is said that Warren Buffett reads 600 plus pages daily and he is choosy about what he reads. He reads only those books that can make him better in his field. This means you should also be more focused while choosing what you read. You must read only those materials and books that are related to your field. This habit alone will make you an expert and boost your confidence. There are two other distinct advantages by developing the habit of reading. In the present-day context, every bit of information is rapidly getting obsolete. By keeping abreast of the latest information in your field, you can defy what is known as the process of being pushed into the "old-timers group." Secondly, reading will expand your horizons and help you in performing better than others. You can run the race with the new generation as well. The result is you will be revered by your employers, supervisors, peers, and subordinates. 

3. Stress and anxiety are two important factors that lower your performance and productivity. This can happen despite your knowledge and expertise in your field. When your performance and productivity dip, you automatically start denigrating yourself. You will slowly begin underestimating your potential. But why will you experience stress and anxiety in spite of your expertise? It is mainly because you try to do all the tasks yourself. You do not delegate. Even if you delegate, you try to micro-manage and hand-hold those to whom you have entrusted the tasks. This approach is certain to increase your stress levels. Further, micro-managing the tasks of others kills their creativity. The only way to overcome this issue is to choose the right people, repose faith in them, and entrust the tasks that can be delegated to them. This will ultimately improve your performance and boost your confidence. 

To summarize, underestimating yourself is certainly an issue that can hamper the process of realizing your potential. You should, therefore, take steps to surmount this issue by pushing boundaries in order to grow in your career and progress in your life.

How to Make Your Workplace Dialogues Pleasant

The purpose of workplace dialogues is not only for communicating but for gathering the required information and sharing ideas, feelings and thoughts as well. But you cannot always have smooth dialogues because you may be dealing with different types of people with different traits. Some people may differ from you and quite often, conversations may turn hostile. But remember that such conversations may cause stress which in turn may affect your health and also your productivity. Also remember that having smooth and pleasant dialogues at the workplace is possible, regardless of whatever may be the situation. Let us have a look.

Handling negotiations

Behavioral science says that it is easy to influence those who have a liking for you. You should therefore try to make people including your opponents like you. The best strategy for this is to find out the interests that are common to you and them. Never forget the old adage "birds of the same feather flock together." Common interests will create a bond between you and them. The goodwill created will improve the trustworthiness and this may help in negotiating successfully.

Another way is to discover relevant points using which you can heap praises on those with whom you are negotiating. This tactic can tilt the negotiations in your favor.

Handling conflict signs

When you conduct meetings, there are chances of conflicts and disagreements erupting. But if you allow them to become major issues, the very purpose of conducting the meetings will get defeated. So, regardless of whether the difference of opinion is with your boss, your peer or subordinate, you must make it a point to use your words carefully. Remember how a copywriter chooses his words for communicating his message. Never try to show that you know everything. Also be careful not to undermine the self-esteem of other participants. Present your points as valuable information without using the tone of arguing. When you present your data with clarity as a copywriting expert does, others may be able to view things with new perspectives that they may have overlooked. This may lead to agreements.

How to do your online marketing

Online marketing may involve a lot of interactions with clients. Never think that clients are asking silly questions. You are in the field and hence, you may be aware of the features of your products or services. On the other hand, your clients may be literate lay people and so, may not know fully well about the products or services you are offering. Therefore, chances of silly questins emanating from your clients are there. You must answer the queries clearly and with patience.

How to share a not-so-encouraging situation or trend

If you think that a particular situation or trend is not encouraging, don't rush to your boss and break the news. Instead, do an in-depth analysis and test the veracity of your discovery. Your way of communicating and the timing of sharing the information are important. You must break the news only when your boss is in a relaxed mood. Not only that, you must have some viable ideas for surmounting the situation. Your boss will not only be receptive to the news but will appreciate you for your ideas. 

Similarly, if you are at the receiving end of some bad news, you must be patient while hearing the information. Workplace dialogues become unpleasant only because people become impatient while listening to others. Due to impatience while listening, you may miss out on some vital information. This may terribly affect your decision making process. On the other hand, if you are patient and listen carefully, you may get all the necessary information that will go a long way in helping you make the right decisions.

Interactions with clients

Like employees, clients may also be of various types. Some clients may show their anger even for trivial things. So, you should develop your skills for dealing with clients. Apart from remaining composed, you must ensure to adopt inoffensive ways to deal with them. When clients raise an issue, request them to give you an opportunity to correct the situation. Tell them in a polite tone that your aim is to satisfy them fully and that you will never leave any step untried for achieving this aim. In short, the clients should be so impressed that they realize that only if they cool down, the issue can be resolved. Simply put, the focus of your approach should be to win their trust back and simultaneously, make them understand that.

To summarize, there are chances of conflicts erupting at the workplace but you must not allow yourself to be consumed by negative emotions. If you allow it, you may not be able to communicate properly and this will ultimately worsen the situation and cause you more stress. If you feel that your emotions may overpower you, resort to the age-old practice of taking a deep breath. Lungs full of oxygen may help you calm down so you can think in the right perspective.

Create a fun environment at the workplace to increase productivity

In the present-day context, we allow our official life to dominate our personal space and this takes a toll on our health. Especially, work-related drudgery can wreck a havoc. So, it has become imperative that we have to find out ways to increase our efficiency and productivity so we bestow enough attention on our personal life as well. Studies have clearly revealed that if we have a fun environment at our workplace, our productivity will go several notches up.


In other words, we should willingly go to our workplace. Only if the ambiance in the office is fun, we will be eager to go to office. Otherwise, we may try to find some reason or the other to escape from the workplace ambiance.


It is unfortunate that even some of the so-called great business leaders do not accept the fact that fun environment in the office will improve the productivity of the employees. These leaders have a notion that people will naturally and automatically enjoy the workplace.  Especially, most of the HR managers wrongly believe that by creating a fun environment in the office, companies will be draining their limited financial resources.


These HR managers also think that such an environment may make the employees lax and the employees may break the basic rules that govern etiquette or may cross the thin line that separates decency and vulgarity.


But HR people will do well if they realize that if employees are suitably trained to use the fun environment of the office wisely, they will certainly enjoy their work and will be more productive. HR folks can bring out a drill that defines what fun is. They should put in place clear rules stating that employees should not make fun of other employees or the managers, they should not indulge in sarcasm and make demeaning comments about others, etc. In short, HR managers should make it clear to employees that efficiency does not lie in tiring oneself while working.


The role of humor in creating a fun environment at the workplace


Humor can do a world of good by easing the stress at the workplace. But not everyone can speak wittily but almost everyone may be able to participate and enjoy humorous situations. Such situations at the workplace can create a bond among employees. This will go a long way in helping the employees in working together to achieve the goals of the company. But again, people should be careful not to be sarcastic and not to pass demeaning comments about others.


Some of the ideas to create a fun environment at the workplace are:


1. Conducting events periodically for helping employees to showcase their talents in various spheres.
2. In the United Kingdom, companies conduct what are known as the "mobile phone throwing" contests. The person who throws his or her mobile phone to the farthest point wins the first prize.
3. "Office-chair race" is quite popular in Singapore companies.
4. Similarly, Polish companies use the "suggestion box" for generating innovative ideas from employees. The employee who comes out with the best idea is rewarded
5. Sam Walton, who founded Wal-Mart, was ready to wear a hula skirt and go dancing down the street when the challenges he set were met by his employees.


In short, if employees work in a stress-free environment, it will certainly lead to greater productivity. As Joe Neulinger who authored "The Psychology of Leisure" puts it, "Those not interested in doing anything but work are not likely to be CEOs."

Stop These Career-Killing Attitudes

When we have unpleasant experiences, many of us tend to put our minds into autopilot and start imagining things. For example, when you do not get the promotion you have all along been thinking you will get, you may immediately come to the conclusion that you are not good enough for getting it. Still worse, you may think that you will never be good enough during your entire career and so, you will never get that promotion.

If such a self-depreciating thinking is an isolated incident, you need not worry. But if you allow a torrent of such thoughts to wreck your life, this is an attitudinal problem. They are also known as cognitive distortions. You must therefore stop them because they may kill your career. If you have this problem, you may tend to interpret a simple event in such a manner that it may cause extreme mental stress. 

The greatest problem with this attitude is it may negatively impact your self-esteem. Eroded self-confidence will affect your productivity. You should therefore know about some of the cognitive distortions so you can stop those attitudes.

Projecting an isolated failure upon every endeavor you undertake

During the course of doing your job, you can not rule out failures. But projecting an isolated failure on future endeavors is wrong. Experts call this as "Black-or-White Thinking."

For stopping this, you must learn to listen how your mind speaks. When you hear your mind speaking such an extreme and unrealistic language, you must push those thoughts out. You must instead recall your past endeavors in which you achieved success. You can also recall the promotions you got or the occasions when you were showered with heaps of praises by your managers and co-workers for well-executed tasks..

Failing to take control of situations when something goes wrong.

When you face a tricky situation and if you allow your negative imagination to fly high, you will not be able to think in the right perspective. Not only that, you may conclude the outcome of the situation may be catastrophic. Such Catastrophic Thinking will not allow you to take control of the situation. 

So, when you face such situations, you must study the situations well to know if there are any areas that can be controlled. You can be certain that regardless of the seriousness of a situation, there may be certain steps upon which you may have control. Therefore, take appropriate action and do your best. This will reduce your stress.

Not allowing the positives to influence your thinking

Risks of failures will always be there. As experts put it, only if you do not take any action, you can avoid failures. But it you fail in a particular task, it is not that you will fail in whatever you do. In fact, you may have accomplished many things in your career. You must not forget those positives. If you forget them, you will be allowing only negative thoughts to reside cozily in your mind. 

The right approach to get rid of this problem is to to forcibly tune your focus only on your positives. You can keep a journal that contains all your accomplishments. Whenever you are staring at a failure, you should immediately take out the journal and go through its contents so you will not allow negative thinking to take on the reins.

Coming to conclusions without knowing the complete facts

When you come across a situation, you should not come to conclusions without studying all the facts completely. This may lead to a lot of stress. You must therefore ask yourself whether you have all the facts and if you have studied them fully. In short, your conclusions should be based only on facts and facts alone.

External control may be a fallacy

Many a time, all of us think that we become victims of circumstances. For example, if you have failed in an interview, you are only responsible for that. You may not have prepared well for the interview session. There is absolutely no external control here. In fact, when you analyze any situation, external control may be a fallacy. You should therefore not blame your circumstances or others for your failures. If you do so, it shows you are not taking responsibility for your life.

To summarize, only if you recognize that you have such attitudes, you will be able to overcome them. You must implant new and different thought patterns in your mind so you can push out the distorted thoughts. If you learn to challenge these career-killing attitudes, you can not only get rid of your stress but can build your self-confidence as well. This will go a long way in helping you climb your career ladder.

Regardless Of Your Age, You Can Optimize Your Earning Potential

Whether you are beginning your career or have been working for a few years, the best asset you have is your earning potential. Every person is different and so, you are certainly different from those who may be financially successful. These successful people may be following good habits such as saving regularly, controlling their expenses and not indulging in any stupid things with the investment options available to them. Though these habits are very important, it is highly essential that you must utilize your earning power wisely. Managing your career is very important in order to use your earning potential optimally. So, when you make vital decisions at your workplace, you must never forget that these decisions can impact your future as well as your earning potential.

The following few suggestions may help you maximize the power of your earning potential.

If you are in the early stages of your career:

Being socially savvy will help

If you ensure to have a good and strong profile on social media sites such as LinkedIn, FaceBook, Twitter, etc., you can benefit immensely because more and more employers are using these sites for finding talents. If your profile that contains details of your skills and accomplishments attracts the attention of hiring managers, you will become one of the highly sought-after candidate for the jobs they have. You must ensure to add a suitable photo also because hiring managers have to be certain that they are dealing with a real person.

Play your numbers wisely

You should adopt a professional approach and be wise to negotiate your remuneration in the initial stage itself. Linda Babcock and Sara Laschever who have authored the book "Women Don’t Ask: Negotiation and the Gender Divide" say that those who fail to negotiate their remuneration in the initial stage of their career may lose even over $500,000 before they reach their normal age of retirement. So, do not hesitate to put your expectation on the negotiating table so you can get the desired salary at the end of the discussions. For knowing the prevailing salary levels, you can talk to your peers or those who are working for the company you wish to work with. You can use the details on sites such as Glassdoor.com and PayScale.com.

Do not leave the game

It is true you may have a lot of domestic chores including taking care of your small children. But the effects of losing your momentum and lost wages are too huge to ignore. A study conducted by Harvard University experts also reveals that earnings of women MBAs who left the game for about 18 months were less by 41% than what their male counterparts could earn. So, before you contemplate quitting completely, try to negotiate to have flexible working works or for working part-time or as a freelance worker.

Never lose your touch 

Even if you have no other alternative except to quit, you must not lose touch. You can even opt for “strategic volunteering” that may dovetail your interrupted career. You must ensure to add this to your resume so prospective employers do not come to the conclusion that you may have lost touch with the field. You can continue to maintain relationship with your co-workers because it will help you keep abreast of the developments in your field. Carol Fishman Cohen, who has co-authored the book, "Back on the Career Track" also opines that it is more important to keep your connections strong especially when you quit and take a break.

Impress the higher-ups

If you have the support of senior–level mentors, you can earn much more than what you can earn otherwise. This fact has been corroborated even by Catalyst, that is a popular workplace researcher. So, you must be proactive and create situations wherein you can prove your worth. You can also seek special assignments that can show how you stand out from others. Be careful to choose those assignments that provide you with a chance to interact with the movers and shakers of the industry in which you are working. If you are working for a company, the assignments you choose must get you access to the top brass of the organization.

Be active

Studies conducted by Vasilios Kosteas, Professor of Cleveland State University reveal that those who are active or who do regular exercises are able to earn 6 to 9% more than those who do not do their exercises. In short, employees who are fit are certainly more productive because they can manage their work-related stress more efficiently. So, they can advance in their career more quickly than the other group.

If you are in the middle of your career:

Modify your resume by giving a facelift to it

Chances of landing in a new and better job increase manifold if you modify your resume by giving a facelift to it. The Ladders, a popular job site suggests that you can take professional help for doing this. Experts advise that it is better you lop off those years and experiences prior to the latest 10 years because employers are interested only in knowing what you have been doing lately.

Tap your connections or contacts

According to "Unlock the Hidden Job Market" that has been authored by Duncan Mathison, more than half of the job openings that arise are never advertised at all. So, if you wisely tap your connections or contacts, you can know even those opportunities that are not advertised.

Research about companies that may be looking for experienced candidates like you

There are a number of companies who may be on the look-out for experienced candidates like you. AARP has a site known as Life Reimagined and CareerBuilder has another site called Prime CB and these sites may help you find such opportunities.

Get tech savvy

There is a conception that older workers are not tech-savvy. You must bust this misconception. Keep abreast of all the technological developments that keep taking taking place and the latest trends by discussing about them with your connections on social media.

Building your brand is essential

Creating a professional website will help. Yola.com helps you create one for free. You can host the site by making a meager payment and this will get you mobile-publishing support also. A website will help in showcasing your work. If you regularly post articles, speeches, client testimonials, and presentations and keep adding your accomplishments and examples of your good work to your site, you can improve your chances of being contacted by companies that may require your services. You can create a blog on the website and keep updating it with posts. This will bolster your chances of landing in a better job.

Never stop acquiring new skills

Being an experienced employee, you are more vulnerable for cutbacks than new employees. Similarly, you may be very slow in rebounding from such situations. Therefore, keep acquiring new skills and add them to your resume so those organizations that seek experienced candidates with such skills may find you easily. In short, you will be protecting or rather improving your earning potential by acquiring new skills.

Be a mentor

You must turn a mentor also for a few deserving employees. The top brass of organizations are always watchful and they have a liking for experienced managers who mentor upcoming and enthusiastic employees at the lower level. They offer more remuneration to such managers than what they offer to non-mentoring managers.

You can maximize your earnings if you take these steps sincerely.