How to be more Engaged at Work
Do you wish you are more engaged at work?
Many of us may not find our work to be something we enjoy. But, truth is that we spend significant portion of our time awake at work. Hence, wouldn’t it make sense for us to be proactive in being engaged in the work we do?
The PERMA Model to a Flourishing Life
According to the PERMA model created by Dr. Martin Seligman, American psychologist, author and founder behind positive psychology movement, engagement is the second building block to achieving well-being. When we experience engagement, or “flow”, we become fully engaged and immersed in the activity.
When we feel engaged, time just flies by and we forget about everything else. Floods of positive neurotransmitters and hormones boost your feelings of well-being and help us stay in the present and enjoy the activities that make us feel focused and involved. When you are able to experience this flow on a regular basis at work, you will feel far more satisfied.
Read this article to find out if you are flourishing at work using the PERMA Model!
Why leveraging on your strengths is the best way to be more Engaged at Work
Rather than seeing work as “work” and not feeling fulfilled, it is possible to change that! My secret for how to be more engaged at work is to LEVERAGE ON YOUR STRENGTHS. This is exactly how you can do so.
Identify your strengths
I can’t stress more about the importance of leveraging your strengths at work! People who use their strengths at work are more likely to be satisfied, energized, perform better and experience happiness at work! Hence, it is important you are aware of your strengths and re-craft your job to utilize or develop your strengths. Unsure of what your top strengths are? If so, check out the free strengths test from VIA.
Re-craft your role based on your strengths
Re-crafting your work to leverage on your strengths will help you to be engaged and get that “flow”! An experience I had was many years ago when I was in a financial controller role, where my role was primarily book keeping, month end closing and reporting. Yes, many of you would agree it is not the most sexy job.
One of my strengths is seeing big picture and generating ideas and solutions. When there was an opportunity for a system implementation project, I immediately raised my hands for it. Yes, I did worked my a** off for a few months, but I also got the recognition and convinced my boss that my role should be tweaked so I can leverage more of my top strengths.
Speak to your manager to discuss how the role fits into your strengths
If I still have not been clear enough in the earlier example, yes, speak to your manager if you feel that your work scope is not leveraging on your top strengths! As the manager, I lost count of the times I had re-craft a staff’s work scope to maximize the use of the person’s strengths. It benefits both the employee and organization, so is a win-win situation! Don’t be afraid to bring this up this to your manager (or their manager)! =)
Create the space for flow and non-flow
So, the reality is that your role may still encompass tasks that are not your favorites. The key is not to shaft those tasks to the back end and failing to deliver them on time or at optimal quality. I have seen numerous instances where my staff would submit a spectacular piece of work that they are passionate about, but fail to deliver the “less desired” work on time! This is not acceptable!
The trick is to be intentional in scheduling the space for flow and non-flow! This means prioritizing and scheduling the tasks that you enjoy and get the flow in AND the urgent tasks that need to get done but do not give you the flow. This way, you will less likely to miss a deadline or deliver a sub-par product. Remember, NO SCHEDULE means NO ACTION.
Elynn Teo | Creator | The Mind Studio
From a finance-leader to a coach, Elynn is passionate about empowering others to become a better version of themselves and live a flourishing life. Elynn spent 18 years working in highly dynamic and fast-paced corporate environments and held various global leadership roles. During this time, Elynn had the privilege to lead and serve global and virtual teams. And, it is through these beautiful souls that Elynn discovered her passion of empowering others to become a better self. Elynn holds a Bachelor in Accountancy, Graduate Diploma in Applied Positive Psychology and Graduate Certificate in Counselling. She is currently pursuing her Masters in Counselling.