Love Your Job - AGAIN!

It happens to all of us… that blah feeling at work where everything you once loved doing now seemed like a bore. We fall in – and out – of love with our jobs all the time. The butterflies of excitement on your first day, the honeymoon period where you can’t wait to get to work and do your thing. Now that it's all over, you wake up thinking “Is it Friday, yet?”

Is it time for a new job, you wonder? We don’t think so! It’s normal to not always love your job but that doesn’t mean you should quit at the first sign of boredom. Oftentimes, we all go through a wave where work becomes exciting then boring and it picks up all over again.

If you find yourself in this situation, fret not – here are some ideas on how you can love your job all over again and recreate that excitement (and passion!) you once had.

#1 Set new goals
One big reason why you don’t look forward to work anymore is because there’s nothing to excite you. Work can feel mundane if you don’t feel like you have something to strive for. So sit down with a pen and paper, and write down new goals for the year – get a promotion, salary increase, learn a new skill, try out a new role. You can also work with your team lead to set reasonable but inspiring goals for you to look forward to each day.

#2 Figure out what you really love about your job
Think hard about your job and the parts you love about it. It can be something small or big – doesn’t matter. Then think of how you can do more of this. If you love planning events, maybe talk to your boss about having more opportunities to do it. If you love thinking of creatives, maybe it’s time to step out of the box and find ways to include this in your daily task.

#3 And what you are good at!
There’s a correlation between what you’re good at and what makes you happy. If you feel like you’re not contributing much or using your best skills, chances are you’ll feel unappreciated making you less likely to be inspired and passionate about work. Make sure you are constantly contributing your best work forward. Shift your attention to be more focused on what you’re good at and you’ll find joy at work once more.

#4 Create an inspiring workspace
Oftentimes, the physical state of your workspace can have a lot of impact on your mental state. If it’s filled with clutter, chances are your day in day out feels the same. If it looks the same as you did when you first started, it can start to feel boring. Which means it’s time for a makeover! Get rid of clutter, hang an inspiring photo, buy new stationery, bring in a favourite mug – anything that can create positive associations with your workspace. You’ll be more excited about coming into work every day when your workspace looks good.

#5 Celebrate your achievements
Start a I-did-it-list! Write down everything you’ve accomplished for the week – nailing a presentation, landing a new contract, finishing up that project. Writing it down will give you a renewed appreciation for your role at work and maybe make you realise that things aren’t as mundane as you think they are. In fact, it will make you feel more positive at work… and that’s step one to falling back in love with work once more!

Photo by Andreas Dress on Unsplash.