Every day I encounter someone, a student, a friend, a client or a family member who complains about either their job environment, job stress, or the people they work with and/or the type of work they do. Some come right out and say it, "I hate my job." Others may not be so frank but secretly harbor hatred and resentment. And there are those who tell themselves, "Be happy you have a job."Here is what to do if you or someone you know is one of these people:
FIRST, Take an inventory of your thoughts, feelings and your experiences by practicing your daily mindfulness training. How? Take a few days and just observe everything about your job and account for any small pleasant and neutral moments. Notice if there are moments when you are actually having fun, laughing or enjoying a deep conversation with a coworker. Notice those moments when you smile at a favorite picture on your desk. Notice the moments when you are doing so well and are focused and feeling good about your work. It may be while you are helping a customer, or simply typing a report, or doing some research on-line. Notice those moments when you take a break, or walk away to get some fresh air (a must do regularly) and also those moments that are just neutral, no hardship, no pain, no stress, no rapture, simply OK.
SECOND, Add up all those pleasant and neutral moments and see if these types of moments actually make up most of your time at work or very little of your time at work. Be willing to see things as they are and not as you believe them to be with one blanket statement or as you'd like it to be.
THIRD, Distinguish between the absolute idea, "I hate this job,"or "I hate the boss," or "I hate my coworker," or "I hate this office," or "I hate my shift." etc. and what is true in each of these moments. You may actually find that not every moment is a miserable moment and not every moment has to be pleasurable for you not to be hating or resenting it. Sometimes we hold onto anger, negative feelings and discomfort for a long time simply to prove we are unhappy. Believe me, it is better to be happy than to stubbornly prove you are not happy.
FOURTH, When you bring awareness to what is actually happening each moment as opposed to what you believe to be happening, you can also see issues and areas of discomfort that are real and that you can actually do something about. Often our mind misjudges a situation and creates a much bigger version of it. Learn to make your problems smaller so you can solve them. Then re-asses them and see if you still really hate your job.
If you find doing this inventory difficult attend our Mindfulness At Work Classes to train your mind to be more discerning and wise so you can expand your chances at success, happiness and contentment. Practicing mindfulness daily will enhance your mood, your choices, your strategies, your relationships and your overall happiness.
For more tips on Mindfulness practice visit: www.mindfulvalley.org
Providing Mindfulness At Work training to your employees can reduce the loss of important resources such as time, money, supplies, and prevent the failure of expensive projects. Practicing mindfulness can enhance the quality of your employees' performance, communication, attendance, attention / presence and overall well-being. Contact us for mindfulness training To Optimize Success and Wellbeing at: info@mindfulbusinessinstitute.com Or Visit: MindfulBusinessInstitute.com
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