Last week I wrote a blog post about why you need to quit your job. This week I’m flipping that around. Why? Because in addition to the many reasons there are to quit one’s job, there are also many reasons people wish to stay, even in a less-than-ideal work environment. Many of my clients want to stick it out at their job to get through a project or to set themselves up for greater success in the next phase of their career. Instead of “jumping ship”, they are looking for a way to be more satisfied in their current environment and find a way to make it work. Here are five strategies on how to succeed and be more satisfied in a non-ideal work environment.
Start With Your Why
It’s important to set your intention and know why you want to stay. Perhaps you’re looking to get another promotion prior to leaving for a higher-level opportunity elsewhere. Perhaps you want to start your own business but want more experience before taking the leap. Or, perhaps you want to leave on really good terms as opposed to leaving when things are bad. There’s no right or wrong reason – there’s only your reason and that is your why. Start with your why so you’re clear on the intention behind wanting to stay.
Become Learning Oriented
Learning oriented people are always looking for ways to expand their knowledge and mind. They are information-seekers and that makes most of what they do feel good. If you’ve decided to stick it out in your current work environment, become a master learner. Every day go in to work with the intention of learning new things and seeking as much information as you can to help you on your journey and into the next chapter of your career. By setting this intention and being learning-oriented, you naturally tune yourself into discovering new things and acquiring new knowledge. This can and will make your experience at work much more energizing and help you feel much more engaged while you’re there.
Freshen Up Your Workspace
We spend most of our days at work and yet often don’t tend to our workspace as much as we do our home space. Freshening up your workspace can be a great way to re-energize your environment. It can be as simple as adding a photo or two of your loved ones or adding some inspirational quotes around your desk. It can also mean bringing fresh flowers into your office each week. Maybe for you it means rearranging your office furniture. Or, perhaps you need to purge some things out of your office instead? The purpose of this is to infuse new energy into your workspace by freshening it up. It can make a huge difference in how you feel about and experience your work environment.
Focus on Giving
When I ask people what they love most about their job (even a job they dislike) the number one answer I receive is, “the people”. People make all the difference at work, especially in a challenging work environment. One way to make staying and trying to succeed in a non-ideal environment more palatable is to focus on the people around you – not only what you can learn from them but what you can give to them. Who can you mentor or coach? What can you do to help support someone else’s success? Finding ways to support others and helping them reach their potential is a wonderful strategy to help you be more satisfied during your time in the organization.
Concentrate On Your Why
The last strategy circles back to the first one. By remembering and concentrating on your why, you remind yourself the reason you’ve chosen to stay and make your journey with this organization a success. Inevitably things may get difficult and not always go as planned. Remembering your why is a great way to get through those difficult times. As long as you keep this intention in the forefront of your mind, your staying power will increase.
I don’t always advocate for staying in non-ideal work environments but when you have a clear reason for doing so, it is definitely possible to make it a pleasant journey. Follow these above strategies and I assure you, you can succeed while also being more satisfied in your current work environment.
