How to find happiness in a job you don’t love
Today’s tip comes from The New Self-Help, Forge’s 21 essential self-improvement books for the 21st century.
💚 Today’s tip: Find one thing you can love about your job, even if it’s not the work itself.
Having a job you’re not wild about doesn’t mean you can’t find something to appreciate about it — and right now, as we all try to work through a crisis, finding that something feels especially important.
“Work occupies much of our time. Yet, most workers cannot do the work that they love,” writes bell hooks in her book All About Love. “The good news is that we can all enhance our capacity to live purposefully by learning how to experience satisfaction in whatever work we do.” According to hooks, there are three ways to do that:
- Doing work well builds your self-esteem, so whatever you’re doing, give it your all.
- A loving environment can make any job feel worthwhile, so build connections with your colleagues.
- Any job can support your inner life. Think about what really matters to you, and how your current job makes that possible.
Remember the saying, “If you can’t be with the one you love, love the one you’re with”? We can’t actually vouch for its usefulness in your love life, but when it comes to work, it can make a world of difference.
✍️ We want to hear from you. Send us an email at forge@medium.com and tell us one thing you love about your job (even if you don’t love your job)! We may feature some of our favorite answers on Forge’s Instagram.
📚 More from Forge on finding happiness on the job:
To Get More Done, Work Less
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A Better Question Than ‘What Makes You Happy’?
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To Enjoy Your Work, Find Your ‘Window of Tolerance’
Read more >>
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