A lot of people are unhappy at work. In fact, it’s almost become an inside joke of sorts for people to talk about how much they hate their job. A lot of the time, it’s understandable—work isn’t always meant to be easy, even if you are working your dream job.
But if you find that work drags you down and you spend your non-working moments dreading the next morning, you might be in need of a mindset shift. To clarify, we’re not saying that the things that make you miserable about work are in your head. They’re very real, but they also don’t have to ruin your day.
Here’s how:
Your feelings about work are real and valid, and so is your desire to change. But if you find yourself thinking that you have no power to change your experience at work, think again. Even your dream job can present struggles, so rather than just wishing for things to change, let’s look at how Vive can help you evolve your mindset to find more joy and fulfillment at work.
The negativity bias.
Humans are hardwired to remember negative experiences over positive ones. Essentially, we have a tendency to not just remember bad moments, but also to spend time dwelling over them, making them even more consuming. This is something that everyone deals with (some more than others), but it is ultimately one of the reasons people have a hard time building a mindset of celebration over despair.
So if you want to be happier at work—or just make it a little less draining—here’s where you start. The next time you find yourself spending just a little too much time complaining about work, take a second to think about whether you’re giving it too much power over the other parts of your life. The parts with family, friends, pets, loved ones, hobbies, maybe even your plants. Shift your focus to prioritize these things instead, and over time, you’ll find that things are a little less difficult.
Reframing your happiness is about the little things.
You’re not alone in feeling the way you do—far from it. But the way you perceive your reality has so much power. Taking tiny steps to change the way your brain responds to the events in your life, i.e., a full inbox, challenging coworkers, stressful work, will make a difference.
We’re not saying happiness comes at the snap of a finger. It doesn’t. But change is possible—it just requires you to take control of your life, and live every day with purpose. Rather than letting work be something that happens to you, take ownership of it!
The next time you see a full inbox that immediately stresses you out, take note of the way you’re feeling. Understand why you feel the way you do—it’s a physical indication of the work you need to do, after all—but once you’ve acknowledged the feeling, don’t let it take over. Validate the feeling, but then shift your focus to how you can resolve it.
We’ve said it before, and we’ll say it again: it’s not easy. Not to mention, different people have their own journeys and work through things at their own pace. But with a supportive community all working through the same thing together, you might find that it’s not so difficult.