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How to Love Your Work Again
Author Kerry Hannon, who wrote the foreword to this book, is a noted authority on work and career. For the last two decades, she has been covering all aspects of business and personal finance as an author, columnist, editor, and writer for leading media organizations including the New York Times, Forbes, Money, PBS, U.S. News & World Report, and the Wall Street Journal. Although I’ve learned much from Kerry’s careful research, what has inspired me the most is her own career path.
Kerry started as a traditional print journalist, earning a salary from major publications. Then about 14 years ago she struck out on her own, freelancing for some of the nation’s top magazines and newspapers. But she does so much more. Kerry has become a prolific author, a peripatetic speaker, a frequent radio and TV guest, and an expert panelist at conferences. This entrepreneurial dynamo has become a one-woman media company. And all along the way she has helped other writers, given generously of her time to nonprofits, pursued her love of horses, traveled with her husband, and stayed in touch with her friends.
In recent years, Kerry has published countless articles and several books about how to follow your heart in order to find the work you love. Pursuing the topic of “second acts,” she has traveled back and forth across the country, interviewing folks who have reinvented their work lives, and speaking frequently about how to navigate midcareer transitions.
Kerry says that many people dream of starting over with an entirely different kind of career. But what she’s been hearing is that, all too often, that kind of big shift may not be practical. So, in a 2015 book, Kerry changed gears to focus on how to make your current job more satisfying. I had the pleasure of serving as an expert for the book and loved the chance to brainstorm with Kerry, learning from her many stories, and talking about the rapidly changing American workplace.
Kerry Hannon says you can find more fun and meaning at your current job
Love Your Job: The New Rules for Career Happiness is Kerry’s guide for people who are looking to find or reignite purpose and joy in their work. She says, “If you want to be happier, you have to do something, to take action.” That doesn’t always mean a big swerve from the past. “It does, however, often call on the courage to make necessary but sometimes uncomfortable and even painful changes.” If you are ready to take action, here are seven tips from Kerry’s book:
1) Begin with a journal. Kerry suggests you dedicate a notebook or computer file to your “Job Remodeling Journal.” Launch your effort by writing for 20 minutes every day for a week. Let yourself go as you talk about what you’d love to see in your dream job. Perhaps you can list people who seem happy at work so you can ask them about what they enjoy in their career. Next, try writing about the times your professional life was most rewarding. Kerry recommends that you create a “budget” in which you list the pros and cons at work. From there, start planning action steps for building on the best parts of your job and addressing the liabilities.
2) Know when it’s burnout. Sometimes you’re feeling miserable, but the problem is not really that you hate your job. As you journal, you may realize that the biggest issue is you’re just too tired. Job burnout can be experienced as physical, emotional, or mental exhaustion combined with self-doubt and uncertainty about the value of your work. If you’re feeling burnt out, the solution must start with you and goes beyond what happens at the office. Consider taking a vacation, or perhaps a series of shorter breaks. And look closely at your health and fitness programs.
3) Stop complaining. According to Kerry, “It’s remarkably easy to fall into the trap of whining and grumbling about a boss, coworker, or employer, but it rarely makes things better.” Her advice is blunt: “Do something. Get over it.” Sometimes you can’t make progress until you “stop the looping chatter.” Kerry suggests that you read over your journal, looking for the specific things you can change. Start working on those aspects of your job by identifying small steps.
4) Get in shape financially. Human resources professionals say that personal financial challenges are a frequent cause of employee stress, poor health, and low productivity. If money problems keep you up at night, your work suffers. On the other hand, Kerry says, being financially fit gives you the freedom to make choices because “you are not trapped and held ransom by your paycheck.” Kerry urges you to do everything possible to eliminate debt. The relief can transform your work life.
5) Enrich your job. Kerry says that making a number of small tweaks to your current job can help it become more interesting and full of opportunity. As a start, stay informed about the trends in your field. “Just being in the know can inspire you to think of projects and tasks.” Also, find ways to do even more of the kind of work you like best. And, at the same time, search for additional kinds of duties. When your bosses ask you to take on another task, “accept the invitation gratefully . . . and then figure out how to do it,” she says. Another strategy for job enhancement is to network more actively with colleagues. Reach out to people you don’t know well, look your coworkers in the eye, find opportunities to smile and chat—and keep building new connections.
6) Create more flexibility. “When I ask people to name one thing that would make them happier about their jobs, they say independence in some way, shape, or form,” Kerry says. The option to work flexibly gives us a sense of autonomy, and that is a good way to make your work life immensely more enjoyable. Two increasingly popular ways to give you back some control are telecommuting and flexible work schedules. “When you feel trapped and micromanaged in your office environment, the sense of control of your own time and virtual freedom can do wonders to help you get reconnected with your work again,” she says.
7) Learn new tricks. “If you’re feeling stuck in your job and don’t know what to do next, charge up your brain cells,” Kerry says. Even if you have only a hazy notion of what interests you, start exploring libraries, classes, or the Web, and learn something new.
The core message from Kerry’s book, in her words, is that “you can turn it around and rebound from your malaise or grim work environment. You have to own it. You consciously choose whether to continue being unhappy or pick an alternate path and change it up, even if it’s in baby steps.”