"A Happiness Advantage" By Shawn Anchor - Another section of the book that struck a nerve with me! I realized I wasn't seeing the positive in my daily routine!
Happiness tends to come from how happy we are within our daily routine and our job.
Happiness psychologists have found that employees have one of three "work orientations" or mindsets about our work. We view our work as a:
Job
Career
or Calling
People who view their work as a job, see work as a chore and their paycheck as their reward. They work because they have to and constantly look forward to the time they can spend away from their job.
People who view their work as a career, work not only out of necessity, but also to advance and succeed. They are invested in their work and want to do well.
People with a calling view their work as fulfilling not because of external rewards, but because they feel it contributes to the greater good, draws on their personal strengths, and gives them meaning and purpose.
Unsurprisingly, people with a calling orientation not only find their work more rewarding, but work harder and longer because of it. And as a result, these are the people who generally are more likely to get ahead and become successful.
The interesting thing is that ANY job can be seen through any mindset. A doctor can see their work as a job and a janitor can see their work as a calling. It's all about mindset.
How do you get to the "calling" mindset without quitting or changing your job?
Ask yourself, what potential meaning and pleasure already exist in what you do. Imagine 2 janitors at the local elementary school. One focuses only on the mess he cleans up each night, while the other believes that is he contributing to the cleaner and healthier environment for the students. They both do the same tasks every day, but their mindsets are different, which affects how well they do their job.
What would you tell someone if you wanted them to apply for the job? What are the positives about the job and the people? These are the things you should focus on.
Create happiness for yourself every day!!
~ Do you have a Job, Career, or Calling? ~
