What’s up Life Forgers!

In the last article, we highlighted the series about the 6 Pillars to create a happier life. Today, we are focusing on the first pillar, Career. I would love to tell you that you don’t need to work to live a happy life…well that is true, but highly unlikely. So, if you are like the rest of us, you sell your time and earn money, to support your way of life. When I started learning more on entrepreneurship, I realized that there are two types of people that will show up for work. You are either the entrepreneur chasing your dreams, or you are the employee that is helping the entrepreneur reach their dream. That doesn’t mean you can’t reach your dreams working for someone else, and many people may achieve that! No matter what path you are on, the goal is to be in a career your enjoy and live happy.

Have you ever come across a person that is driven and happy at your place of work? This person may push hard to do everything correctly, learning different things, and is way too excited to be at work. Then another person at work is doing the bare minimum, shows up late, messes things up and on the verge of being fired. The difference between the two, is that one person has the drive to be there, move up, and maybe own their own business or be a manager of that business. There is a sense of purpose in the work they do. The other person is showing up just to make enough money to make it by in life. Your purpose has everything to do with the drive you have for the career you are in. Even if you are there temporarily, you can still make the most of it.

Here are the areas that contribute to happiness in your career:

A Sense Of Purpose: Do you have a compelling reason for being in the industry you work in or at the company you work for? If you’re an entrepreneur, there is a reason you started your own business or non-profit. You need to identify your sense of purpose even if it is to be the best burger flipper of the month, help 100 people to achieve something, create the most products on the assembly line, or create the best company to work for that provides something. Without your sense of purpose doing what you’re doing, you will find yourself being unhappy.

Employers, managers, and supervisors, if you want to ensure you keep the best people around, make sure your employees feel valued in what they do and supported. This is far more beneficial than a higher paying job doing the same thing.

Financial Stability or Goals: An entrepreneur/business owner doesn’t start because of the immediate financial success. There is a delayed payoff to what it is they’re doing. This also comes with a higher risk but can be met with a higher reward later. As an employee, you may have to look at how your bills will be paid now and how you can sustain your way of life. This may mean taking a position that doesn’t fulfill your sense of purpose but meets your financial goal. But if there was a way that you could start off a little lower in salary but work up passed where you would be if you settled for a position because of pay, would you take it? Pay is one of the first things someone will look at when looking for a job. A sense of financial security is desired but could also hold you back from something that can eventually be bigger.

Employers, managers, and supervisors, are you ensuring that your people are being taken care of? Do they consistently provide more value than what is expected of them? If you want to keep the good employees around, evaluate the pay they receive. It may be time to reward them with a pay increase, bonus, or some other way of showing them they are valued. If you want employees that work hard, have you outlined a success path that outlines how they can move up?

Personal Growth: It has been proven that people that strive to grow, create more value with what you provide in the workplace, become better at what you do, and can groom you for the next higher position. By working on personal growth, you may find yourself happier where you work, eager to do better, and even become an expert within the realm of what you do. If you notice people coming up to you with questions about the work they do, you may be considered more knowledgeable. Eventually someone will move up into a different position and the time to learn what needs to be done in the higher position, is not when you get there. Prepare yourself now by understanding the requirements and what’s expected of a person in that position. As I tell my kids, you are entitled to everything in this world, and you are entitled to nothing. The difference is the amount of work you put in to be entitled to something. You are put in a position because of what you are currently, not what you could be.

Employers, managers, and supervisors, do you have programs in place to help groom your employees towards the next steps in their career? There may be certifications an employee can get, summits that they can attend, or even provide college assistance.

Social Connection: Your social connections in the workplace, also has an impact on your happiness. What makes the United States military so great, is the comradery that is built within it. When I went on a deployment overseas, it wasn’t just about the mission, it was about the people to the left and right of me. It was about caring for the people. Although you can’t control what other people think and do, you can control what you think and do. If you have ever heard someone say, “why do you care so much?” They realize you care. How you act and react to people around you does matter in creating bonds with others. You don’t have to be the most liked, but being part of a team will increase the daily happiness in your work environment. Sometimes, you may have to take the initiative to have the “water cooler” talks or be around those that are having it. If you’re the social butterfly and notice someone is never part of the group, open it up to them and they just might surprise you. By having at least one other person in the workplace that you can talk with, will make a difference.

Employers, managers, and supervisors, are you fostering an environment that can help your employees have some social connections? This may be a team building event outside of the workplace such as an obstacle course that requires them to work together, a get together outside of the workplace to do something fun, or even a fun and creative way inside the workplace that challenges them to get to know one another. Things to look at that may hurt social connection that needs to be dealt with right away is gossip and negative talk about other employees and the workplace. This grows like a weed and has the potential for even the good employees to be affected negatively. Even if you have an all-star performer that is top of the sales chart but brings down the others, this will hurt your organization. Their actions will pull down the rest of the team causing them to underperform. A team of one is a team of none.

At the end of the day, you will walk away from work and head home. If you can’t detach yourself from work before you walk through the door, your family will be affected. When they are affected, your happiness will continue to be drained. When you get out of your car, leave the problems at the closed door. You can pick back up with the problems when you open the car door once again to head to work. If the problems persist at work, bring it up to the management. Don’t sacrifice your overall happiness for a quick buck. If you have to, find a place that provides you with purpose, financial stability, growth, and connection. Your happiness awaits!

In the next newsletter, you will discover more on the second pillar of happiness which is relationships.

If you find value in these newsletters, I invite you to subscribe and share them with others who may benefit from the wisdom shared. Let’s support each other on this journey of growth and self-discovery.

Make the rest of your day, the best of your day!

Trey Ryder

P.S. Know of specific topics you’d like me to explore further? don’t hesitate to reach out and share your thoughts. Together, we can uncover the secrets to living a life of purpose, passion, and fulfillment.