What do you enjoy most about your work? Do you love what you do?
Many of us probably have a mix of tasks, some that we love and other bits that we, well, don’t love quite as much.
These will differ by person and by role, and may also evolve for the same person at different stages of their careers. You could well have two people enjoying quite different aspects of a similar role.
The bits you don’t like
The bits you don’t like may include administrative tasks, organizational politics, or people management. You know the ones I’m referring to: they’re the ones that can drain you of energy just thinking about them. Or, they’re the ones that you tend to put off or delegate to others, if at all possible.
Luckily these aren’t the entirety of your role…
For ways to minimize these parts further, check out “Doing less of the things you hate”
The bits you love
Focusing on the positive, what are the elements you love most?
You may never have taken the time to reflect on this before.
What brings a smile to your face and a warm feeling in your heart? Also, what helps you to feel ‘in flow’, that is really in the moment? Lastly, what brings you energy and true satisfaction?
Why do you love what you love?
Now you’ve identified these components, consider why is it that you enjoy them. What specifically are you doing when you do them? Have you always loved them, or has this evolved over time?
You may enjoy solving complex problems, identifying opportunities to add value, or helping others. You may like to support others to achieve or take center-stage yourself.
Taking the time to understand your preferences further, could help you to understand yourself and your current role a little better.
How much is enough?
Now, the clincher question!
What proportion of your working time is spent doing the things you love? If you’re struggling with balancing your work and life, my online course on this challenge can help you, click here to get started.
For the fortune ones, a big proportion of your time will be spent doing what you love. The rest of your tasks can then be accepted or tolerated, as part and parcel of what you do.
For others, the components we love most may form a minority part. This could be because it’s currently a side part of your role. It could be that as you’ve climbed your chosen career ladder, you play less of a technical role as you’re managing a team who does this.
Focusing on the work that you love. Just imagine that you could increase this proportionally. What could that bring you? Greater satisfaction? The ability to add greater value? The opportunity to achieve better results?
Love What You Do: Options and Choices
Believe it or not, we always have choices and often more options than we believe possible.
These choices can range from small tweaks to big leaps and everything in between, for example:
- Adapt your current role
- Delegate more to your team
- Collaborate with peers with complementary skills and aspirations
- Take on more from your boss
- Complete an assignment or a project
- Switch to a different role
- Move companies
- Change careers
- Set up your own business
It may be that you can’t identify or grasp options relevant to your own situation. It’s sometimes difficult to see the wood from the trees. But I can help you to discover and reach these. Get in touch to learn more.
Wrap up
Many of us probably have a mix of tasks that make up our work. Some that we love and other bits that we don’t love quite as much. If we can spend more time doing the parts we love, we’ll end up more satisfied and maybe even more successful.
Given that most of us will be working until our late 60s (or beyond), surely that’s worth some a try?!
If you’d like to discuss this with an independent sounding board, get in touch for your free career discussion.
Thanks for reading. Check out other Blue Diamond articles to help you take control of your work and life.
