You aren't alone if you're disengaged at work
I hate my job!
Are you bored, unmotivated or checked out at work?
Or are your feelings more intense: Do you dread going to work for an abusive boss, or scream and cry after a day of a hostile work environment?
Wherever you are on that spectrum, you aren’t alone. A Gallup poll found the percentage of workers who are “actively disengaged” – those who have miserable work experiences – increased slightly from 2019 to 2020, from 13% to 14%. Maybe as you talk to your friends, it sounds like a lot more than 14%.
What do you do about that misery? With the economy picking up, it’s probably tempting to polish your resume and go hunting for a new job.
But will that new job will be any better than where you are today?
Starting with a clear understanding of why you hate your job can help you create a vision for a job you don’t hate.
Your guide on this journey has both personal experience and professional training as a life and career coach. I have had jobs where I was bored, and I’ve had jobs that made me scream and cry, so this course is informed by my own experience. I’ve evolved my understanding of career satisfaction as I’ve blogged for the last 10 years about living life intentionally. I am a trained and experienced coach, having done immersive coursework with CTI, the foremost organization offering in-person coach training. Learn more about me and my background.
But this course is more about you than about me. This isn’t sitting back and watching yet another streaming video. My role is to provide you with the instructions you need to do the work. I’m more of a personal trainer, helping you learn how to use the equipment and cheering you along, than lecturer. I don’t want you to feel the obligation of more webinars you “should” watch. I want you to use these tools to better understand what’s not working for you so you can craft a vision for work that suits you.
Get clarity on the problem you need to solve
Why do you hate your job?
Being miserable at work can have numerous causes. It’s important to know what’s wrong so you know to how to make it better.
For example:
- Are you burned out and exhausted because you work all day then spend nights and weekends managing everything at home? Maybe a conversation with your spouse and kids would help ease your overload.
- Do you feel like you’re constantly working and there’s no time for your life? Have you tried establishing some limits for phone and laptop time, or could you talk to your boss about setting sustainable expectations?
- Does your job lack something that’s meaningful to you, like creativity or service to your community? Could you get that need met through a hobby or volunteering outside of your job?
This isn’t trying to talk you into enduring a terrible job. It’s about getting specific about the problems that need fixing.
When you’re miserable at work, it can be hard to see clearly. When our brains go into that fight/flight/freeze mode, we just think about survival. All we want to do is get away from the suffering and protect ourselves.
This course aims to help you get clear about what you need, so you don’t jump into a new job that’s just as bad or worse. Instead, you’ll create a vision that spells out what you need so you can find or create that better situation.
In a series of hands-on exercises, you will:
- List out the specifics of what’s good and bad about your job.
- Evaluate how your job fits into your life now, and how you want it to fit.
- Clarify your values. What motivates you? What are your priorities?
- Write your vision for a perfect job, retaining what you like and changing what you don’t about your present job so that your work is in better alignment with your values and supports your holistic life in the way you want.
I won’t teach you how to write the perfect resume or give you pointers on excelling in interviews. You won’t learn how to negotiate for a raise or promotion, either. Those are important skills, but you can learn those lots of other places.
Think of this as the prerequisite for writing your resume, or for having that talk with your boss or family. You’ll get prepared to make the changes you need by knowing what success looks like.
Self-paced modules make it easy for you to work the way that suits you best
Choose your own adventure
You’ll get access to all the worksheets and videos all at once. Each segment will take about 20 minutes, though of course you can spend as much or as little time doing the exercises as you like. Maybe you’d like to dedicate an afternoon to doing it all at once or you can spread them out over several days, if that fits your life better.
Choose the way you like to work. Each segment includes written instructions, a video and a worksheet. Everyone learns differently and we all have our own unique demands on our time and energy. I suggest you set aside some quiet time where you focus on yourself, but you can listen to the video while you’re exercising or on the go, if you’re more of a podcast person. You can sleep on the exercises or talk them over with friends. Create the experience that meets your needs and preferences.
Get interrupted? Pause the video for a minute or a week. Chip away at your worksheets as you have time. You control your progress.
Did you have an especially bad day at work? Did you get an exciting nibble for a new job? Come back and redo any of the exercises if it helps refresh what you learned or if your situation is shifting.
For a limited time, I’m offering this class for a steal: just 14 bucks! I want to help as many people as possible come out of the pandemic by being happier at work.
Sign up now to get started working toward a happier, healthier, more fulfilling job!