According to a Gallup survey, 71% of US employees are disengaged and this is not just linked to productivity but your health and wellbeing. I read a great piece in The Glass Hammer by Henna Inam about reigniting your career passion. Sometimes we all need a little jumpstart to reinvigorate a fading career passion when burn-out or the stagnancy of a career rut slows us down.
Henna Inam’s five steps to reigniting your career passion will help you fall in love again with what you do. Sometimes you don’t need a new career – just a different lens to look at the career you already have.
1. Peak Experiences
Start by writing down the job tasks or experiences in your career that you absolutely love. Focus on those that bring a spring to your step, according to Inam and look for common themes. These are the things you want to do more of.
2. Personal Brand
Reflect upon your purpose, strengths, and core values. A big part of personal engagement is whether or not you are playing to your strengths and honoring your professional values. What is your personal brand? You must know what gives you a sense of purpose in order to maintain the passion in your career and seek out opportunities to enact those values more regularly in your workplace.
3. Position Alignment
Does your current job align with your personal brand and your values? Do whatever tweaking is necessary to realign your career to be fulfilled at work. Are you playing to your strengths every day? If not, find ways to transition into work tasks that better match your authentic professional self.
4. People
Relationships are very important in our feeling of fulfillment and engagement at work. Do you have a direct supervisor who recognizes your contributions and encourages your development? The perfect boss is not always possible so seek out mentors and sponsors to foster positive professional relationships and play that role for others in an effort to pay-it-forward.
5. Past-times
Having hobbies or avocations outside of work can energize you while you are on-the-job. This personal passion on your own time is contagious and spills over into your work life in positive ways. Your energy is a precious commodity and you deserve to spend this on non work related activities as well. Having outside passions will keep you motivated at work.
Consider Henna Inam’s 5 P’s to help you reignite your passion at work. Sometimes a little jumpstart can make all the difference in bringing more fulfillment back into your work and your life.
