Are you lacking the motivation you once had for your career? A recent Harris survey showed that only 14 % of U.S. workers have the perfect job and more than half want to change careers. These are staggering numbers and not necessarily surprising. It’s easy to find yourself in a career malaise. Maybe you’ve lost your edge and you’re phoning it in.
I know what it’s like. I was on autopilot the last few years of my advertising career. I became stale and it was having an impact on my career and my happiness. It was disheartening for me to feel this way and I decided to do take action to improve my job satisfaction.
Here are three small steps you can take to increase your motivation and job satisfaction:
Develop a personal learning agenda
At a point in your career, it’s not unusual to stop making time to learn. Either because you don’t have the time or you mistakenly think you know it all. I was guilty of not making the time. This changed once I began a yearlong process to become a certified executive coach while I was still working full-time. Since then, I’ve developed an ongoing personal learning agenda to keep me fresh and knowledgeable.
Let go of unnecessary grudges
The longer you’re at a company the more likely it is that you are holding on to grudges – overlooked promotions, income disparity or lack of support and recognition. I was frustrated that my career had stalled. I could rattle off a series of injustices. The hallways were filled with people to blame and it was weighing on me. Once I decided to let go of what “didn’t happen”, I slowly began to regain my spirit to focus on what “can happen”.
Identify a project or initiative that has meaning for you.
Sometimes your day-to-day assignments aren’t the most fulfilling, especially if you have been doing the same job for a number of years. Seek out a new project or initiative that excites you. I took over and revamped a training program for mid-level account executives to great success. It was a lot of fun, well received and it gave me a stepping-stone to my new career.
Taking small steps forward can increase your job satisfaction and even open up new opportunities within your company.