Are you happy in your current workplace? If so, then you might be one of the few. Research tends to suggest evidence that the majority of people are not achieving high levels of job satisfaction.
Why is this a problem?
On average, people will spend 30% of their total lives working. If you take into account sleep and traffic, then you’re going to spend more time working than you do with family, friends or on things that you enjoy.
If you aren’t happy with your job then you’re going to end up resenting or even hating the time that you spend on it. So, let’s look at some of the key steps that you can take to ensure that you do achieve high levels of job satisfaction in your career.
Choose a Business With The Right Culture
First, you might want to choose to work for a business that has the right culture in place.
Office culture is one of the key factors that you should consider when you are applying and interviewing for different jobs on the market. You should be able to see evidence of the right office culture when you go to an interview.
Alternatively, you can also explore resources such as Glass Door. Here, you will be able to access real accounts from previous employees about a business that you might be thinking about working for. The right office culture will make work more enjoyable on a daily basis.
Focus on Your Passion
You may also want to consider focusing on a career that is based on your passion, something that you enjoy or something that you find particularly appealing.
For instance, you could be fascinated by technology. If so, then it does make sense to focus on a career that is based around this possibility.
You might also love the idea of working with children and you could have children of your own who you have a strong connection with.
If that’s the case, then it sounds like a career in the teaching sector might be a great choice. This is just a couple of the key examples that could be worth exploring.
Work for Yourself
Next, you should consider how you can work for yourself. Some people will find a setup like this far more beneficial compared to the more traditional employee, employer model.
There are two ways that you can work for yourself. You can either start your own business. Or, alternatively, you can freelance and provide services to people based around your skills or talent.
It’s up to you which approach you decide to take here. If you are setting up a business, make sure that you explore levels of demand and the type of risk that you will be taking on.
Read also: Freelancer vs Blogger vs Course Creator: Which Business Model is Right for You?
Think About Your Work Environment
Your work environment can have a tremendous impact on your levels of job satisfaction. If you aren’t working in the right environment, then you’re going to struggle to stay positive.
One of the ways that you can manage this more effectively is by thinking about aspects such as air quality. Adding plants to the environment will always improve the office air quality and may ensure that the space is suited for higher levels of productivity.
Ergonomic furniture can also help guarantee that you are comfortable in your work environment. This is particularly important if you are going to spend about eight hours behind a desk each day.
Keep It Interesting Each Day
One of the major problems that drives down job satisfaction is that every day can feel like the same thing. This will be the case if you’re stuck in a repetitive schedule.
That’s why you need to make things more interesting. If you’re working in education, you should explore lots of different work materials. There are countless types of teacher resources that could be suitable for you and that will provide a more varied day for you as a professional.
If you are working in an office you should consult with your employer to ensure that you are constantly being challenged each time you go into work.
Explore The Key Incentives
It’s worth exploring the different incentives that you can gain access to as an employee as well. You need to make sure that you are provided with incentives that make it feel as though it’s worth going into the office each day.
Incentives can take lots of different shapes and forms. For instance, it could include a company car. Or, you might want to think about working for a business that will provide a complete medical support plan.
You could also consider looking at specialist incentives such as unlimited days leave throughout the year. Tech companies like Netflix and Google are already offering these benefits to their team members.
Don’t Sacrifice Your Health
It’s important that you aren’t sacrificing your health in your career. This is true regardless of where you are planning to work and what position you intend to fill.
For instance, you need to ensure that you aren’t at risk of developing RSI while working. This is always going to kill your level of satisfaction and kill your long term quality of life.
To deal with this, make sure that you are taking regular breaks whether you are working at home or in a traditional office environment.
Work to Live, Don’t Live to Work
It’s important to make sure that you have your priorities in the right place. Obviously, you will want to succeed in your career. But unless you have a specific mindset that is focused on work, you shouldn’t live to work.
Instead, you should use work and your income as a tool to do things that you want to do in life. One of the ways that you can guarantee this is the case would be by managing your schedule effectively. You should also set life goals for your income whether that’s taking trips or making fun purchases.
Find Meaning
You should also strive to find meaning when working for a particular business. This often means ensuring that it feels like you are working towards a goal in your career.
If you are teaching, for example, then you might want to focus on how your work will contribute to what children will achieve later in life and how they develop.
This is also the reason why a lot of modern workers are keen to work for businesses that have a philanthropic edge or a company that is focused on doing real things to help people around the world.
Work Somewhere You Are Valued
Finally, you should make sure that you are choosing to work for a business where you are likely to be valued.
There are lots of different ways that an employer may show that you are valued and appreciated. Again, this can be through the incentives that they provide. Or, it might be the level of pay that they offer.
You should always check to see if similar employees are being paid the same amount as you or even less from competitor businesses that you could work for instead.
We hope this helps you understand some of the key steps that you should take to ensure that you do achieve a high level of job satisfaction in your career.
By exploring the best options, you can guarantee that you don’t get bored working. That’s important because if you don’t put the right amount of effort in, it can limit your levels of achievement. This includes how much you might be able to earn overall as well as the positions that you can take on in the future.