Would you like to wake up, just before the alarm, impatient to get on with your day because the best job in the world is waiting for you? Whether you leave the house for an office cubicle, work from home, go off to work in a service job or perhaps to be your own boss – the job you already have is the best job in the world… or it could be.
I can hear you groaning right now, “It’s slavery,” you say, “It pays the rent and puts food on the table. That’s all it is, a job. I hate getting there, and I can’t wait to leave at the end of the day.” I beg to differ. You could create the best job in the world right where you now.
Firstly, think about this: If you treat your job offhandedly and with resentment, it will do the same to you.
18 Tips to Make Yours the Best Job in the World
Be the Best at Your Job
#1. Whatever you do, from flipping burgers to chairing a meeting, be the most professional you can be. Be the best burger flipper. Use the training you were given and improve on it. Get more training when and wherever you can.
#2. Look for ways to expand your job. Take on a little extra responsibility. Ask for it, if you can. You don’t want to over-burden yourself, but if you can do an extra task, then do it. Eventually, you can slip into ‘job crafting’, where you assess which tasks you enjoy and which you don’t. Then ask for more of those you like and aim to ‘lose’ the worst.
#3. Work time is not play time. Put the phone away, get off Facebook (unless it’s part of your job) and do some actual work. Discourage friends and family from calling you during work time unless there’s a dire emergency.
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Have the Best Attitude
#1. Be positive. This doesn’t mean being excruciatingly and permanently cheerful; it only means looking for the positives in any work situation. A customer is unhappy and makes a complaint? It’s an opportunity for improvement. You make a mistake? Again, use it as a learning opportunity.
#2. Show a genuine interest in everyone you meet in the course of your job. Look at them. Listen to them. Give them your undivided attention. Never make anyone feel that they are in the way, irritating you or, heaven forfend, ‘mere customers’. Everyone you meet changes you in a tiny, infinitesimal way, as you do them, so make sure they leave you feeling better than they did before.
#3. Cultivate a good relationship with your boss. She or he may be your boss, but they are just the same as you. Treat them as an equal, with a pleasant smile, but be willing to do as you are asked. Try to work out how they operate without being sycophantic.
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Work on Your Teamwork
#1. Spend some time reading about effective team-working; don’t just muddle through. Know your part in the team, but don’t be hesitant in suggesting better ways of working.
#2. Communication is essential in team-working, whether it be active brainstorming and resource sharing, or you need to iron out a problem with another team member. Don’t allow resentment to fester; use your communication skills to work things out.
#3. Initiate some task-swapping with other employees. For instance, if you hate writing reports but love spreadsheets, try to find out if there is another person with the opposite preferences. Try to swap some of those tasks with each other. You will be a better employee if you are working at tasks you enjoy.
Cultivate Integrity
#1. If you make an error, then admit it as soon as you notice, apologize, and tell your boss you’ll fix it. Then fix it. Never, ever try to pass the blame on to another coworker.
#2. Ask for an explanation if you don’t understand something. It’s better to ask than to pretend you know what you are doing.
#3. Keep your private life to yourself and don’t gossip. Gossips are soon labeled as such, and employers tend not to reward them.
Be Kind
#1. Be kind to your subordinates. Remember when you were in their position. Don’t keep vital information from them and don’t ever be sarcastic or ill-mannered at their expense. The last thing you need is a reputation as a bully. Treat them to coffee or cream cakes occasionally; make your team feel good.
#2. If a coworker is stressed or upset, ask how you can help. Sometimes all they need is to feel someone is on their side.
#3. Give your team-mates’ ideas due consideration. Never dismiss a suggestion out of hand. Tell them you’ll think about it or ask them to expand their idea. If it’s unfeasible or downright silly, don’t say so; say the time isn’t right for it, but you’ve made a note for future reference.
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Work Journal
#1. Keep a day-book with you at all times. It’s your work bible. Log those ideas, suggestions and tips. Check your day-book morning and night and add anything relevant to your schedule. Use your day book to prepare a list of tasks for the following day. Include everything – the chat you need to have with a coworker, the marketing tip your boss might appreciate, details of the client call you made today.
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#2. At home, keep a private journal for things to do with your job that you wouldn’t want anyone to see. You can rant into a journal. You can work through problems by writing them down and analyzing them. It’s surprising how, just by putting it into words, a solution makes itself known.
#3. Use your private journal to visualize improvements to your job. Write your idea of your dream job. How it would make you feel, how it would make a difference to your life. Write it as if it is a done deal and you are already living it. Add to it, expand on it and keep doing it. See your journal as a place where you create the perfect work situation. When your journal is full, re-read it and see how many of those visualizations have already come true – proof you are already working at the best job in the world.
For personal career advice, contact one of our professional psychics.