Follow your joy

Are you having fun at work? There are parts of any job that might feel tedious and uninspiring, but, according to Bill Burnett and Dave Evans, “if most of what you do at work is not bringing you alive, then it’s killing you.” They also add: “Work is fun when you are actually leaning into your strengths and are deeply engaged and energized by what you are doing.”

It’s essential to find parts of your work day that make you feel alive and joyful. So during this week identify work tasks and activities that make you feel engaged and energized.

HOW TO: As you go through your day, every time you switch tasks make a mental (or written) note on how it makes you feel. How does answering your emails feel? How does working on your current project feel? How does the staff meeting feel? How does teaching that class feel? Be honest with yourself. Once you identify tasks that do not make you feel engaged and energized, try to identify what exactly makes you feel that way, and whether or not you can make charges in how you approach it.