Many people will be all too familiar of the feeling of dread that comes upon you as Sunday draws to an end and Monday morning and therefore work grows ever closer. When you’re actually at work, you may even be familiar with the all too common clock watching that goes on and the constant wishing that the clock hands would just speed by so you can go home.
Some people will deny that they do this or indeed deny they experience the ‘work dread’ but these feelings and actions are actually really common, as all too often companies do not spend time encouraging and motivating their employees enough and this leads to a disheartened workforce, full of people who really do not want to be there. This is not only bad for the company, as production and efficiency will go down but it is also bad for you, the employee.
You may find that your mood is constantly low as a result of a variety of reasons, such as:
- A total lack of rewards or opportunities for promotion, despite how hard you work
- Repeatedly being given the unenviable tasks that no one else wants
- Having an unsupportive line manager
- Only having work colleagues, not work friends, so you have no one to talk to at lunch or on breaks
These reasons above, in addition to many others, can leave you feeling depressed and much stressed, all of which can have serious health implications. So, if you find yourself bored, stressed or demotivated at work what can you do? Whilst it’s not always easy to make things better for yourself at work, that’s no reason not to try, however, life is not easy, accept that and you’re taking the first step to making things better.
Staying motivated at work
The first step to motivating yourself is to make sure that you have a positive attitude for if you are constantly negative, you will always take the easy route and possibly end up even more unhappy than you were at the start. No one wants to be around a negative person, so if you are finding things hard at work, hold your head up high and be upbeat. Remember the saying that positivity breeds positivity and success is sure to follow you.
Try to ensure that you always take a lunch break but don’t do it alone. Making friends can be hard but you’re bound to have things in common with some colleagues, so find the common ground, whether it’s sport, TV, drinking or music and get socialising. You’ll be surprised at how much a 10-30 minute friendly conversation about something you enjoy can lift your spirits and motivate you for the rest of the day.
Try to have fun at work, although make sure you’re still getting all your work done and that you are not behaving inappropriately. Perhaps you can set up a work sports team or a band so that you can practice in your lunch breaks. You should also put up lots of happy family pictures or photos of you being adventurous on your desk and computer. Pick those which will never fail to lift you out of a negative mood and make sure you look at them and remember happy times whenever you’re feeling a bit low.
Ultimately you must make sure your attitude is right if you want to stay motivated. You need to be able to forget any failures or disagreements with your boss and focus on what you’ve achieved. Keep your mind on all the things that you excel at and above all, ensure that you maintain a good work to personal life balance.
Motivation at Work Conclusion
Motivation at work is not an easy topic and many people struggle with it, so be assured that you are most definitely not alone. The trick is to know when boredom is about to creep up on you and so do something right away in order to keep it at bay, whether this means getting up and grabbing some fresh air, getting a hot or cold drink or grabbing a colleague for a 5 minute gossip.
Obviously there will still be some times when it’s just too hard to snap out of your demotivated state and that is where it becomes important to have friendships with your colleagues. Your colleagues will no doubt have been thorough the same sort of thing and so can share their motivation methods with you, or can give you some encouraging talks that make you feel a lot better about yourself and your current work state.
Lastly, you can always choose to work with a career or life coach who will be able to talk you through a variety of motivational techniques, as well as help you to work out which direction you see your career going in and whether your current job is really what you want and need.
Keep in mind that we spend the majority of our lives at work, so it just isn’t healthy to spend all that time in a negative state of mind. You can always find another job; you just need to invest enough time into working out what it is you really want from your career and then go for it!
About Nik Lemmens
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