3 Ways to Increase Job Satisfaction

Sharon Mak All, Career Tips Leave a Comment

H5a-Canada-Closeup-portrait-of-happy-business-group-NeustockOn a scale of 1 to 10, what is your current level of job satisfaction? If it is below an 8 or so, there is much room for improvement in this area. Those of us who struggle with feeling unfulfilled in our work should pursue greater job satisfaction for the sake of our hearts and our sanity. Are you willing to do whatever is necessary to become more satisfied with your career?

Greater Productivity: the Secret to Job Satisfaction

The secret to increasing job satisfaction is not always getting a new job; it is growing your level of productivity at your current job. The reason for this is simple: being more productive at work heightens your self-esteem and contributes to your overall happiness.

How do you feel at the end of a workday in which you haven’t achieved much? Unaccomplished? While this isn’t a fun emotion to feel, even worse are the underlying feelings of unworthiness tied to the belief that you are unneeded at work. This belief is often birthed during a time of low productivity. The more you leave work feeling stressed or depressed over the things that are left undone, the more this damaging belief becomes embedded into your psyche. The key to stopping this cycle is to increase your productivity at work.

Working Smarter, Not Harder, Increases Productivity at Work

A big misconception about productivity is that one must work harder in order to become more fruitful in the workplace. This is not the case. What we need is to learn to work smarter, not harder. Here are a few examples of ways to work smarter and reap the rewards of increased productivity:

1. Keep a check on checking your email – Many people check their email accounts literally dozens of times each day. Who knows how much time this consumes. Save your much-needed mental energy by checking your email just two or three times while you are at work. You’ll be surprised how much more you’ll get done when your day is not taken up with reading and answering emails.

 2. Have face-to-face conversations – While we’re on the topic of emails, let’s not forget that having face-to-face, non-email conversations is critical to conserving time. Julie Ellis, writer for Recruiter.com, says, “We’ve all seen it happen. A simple email over a simple issue becomes an exchange that eats up an hour of time. You can resolve things much faster if you simply pick up the phone, knock on someone’s door, or make contact on Skype. You’ll fix small misunderstandings and get your point across much more efficiently.”

3. Make sure you are eating at work – If you want to be more productive at work, you must eat. Always bring lunch and snacks. When you take a break, don’t check Facebook; instead, eat foods that nourish your body and sustain your energy. Simply eating regular meals and snacks may be the most effective thing you can do to promote productivity at work.

 Which of these 3 tips will you put into practice this week?

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