Major study reveals that the person we least enjoy being around is our boss or manager.
A Swedish study of more than 3,000 workers reported that those who felt their boss was the least competent in the workplace had a 24% higher risk of heart problems. And after only four years of working for that individual, the percentage jumped to an astounding 39%! (credit: Well Being by Tom Rath)
This study demonstrates that a negative work environment is just as detrimental to your health as excessive drinking, smoking or a diet high in processed sugar. Even worse, a job and boss that you detest leads to an over-consumption of alcohol, smoking more cigarettes and consuming more sugar. You can already see the development of a vicious cycle that is hell-bent on shortening our productive lives, crushing our creativity and severing relationships with our loved ones.
But does it really have to be this way?
Here’s how you will know if you need to seriously start thinking about making some professional adjustments.
- You wake up on Monday morning already looking forward to Friday afternoon
- Sunday evenings are filled with anxiety as Monday morning quickly approaches
- You choose to enter the workplace through the backdoor to avoid walking pass your boss’ office
- You fail to crack a smile until after lunch
- You are overly angry when you come home after work and take your frustrations out on your loved ones
- You show up to work only to earn a paycheck, and could care less about bettering the business
- You avoid co-workers outside of the workplace like the plague
- You eat lunch in your car and never leave the parking lot
- You are angered by laughter in the workplace
- You spend more time looking at Facebook on your phone than actually concentrating on your work
If you can honestly say that at least five of these apply to your current employment situation, you may need to take the time to sit down with your family, and express your concerns about the direction of your professional life.
The idea that work is something we’re simply “not supposed to enjoy” is absolutely absurd. Not only is it an extremely unstable mindset, but it stiff arms all personal development. It stifles creativity, douses happiness and leads to soured relationships.
It destroys our bodies, minds and souls one day at a time!
A study performed by the Gallup organization discovered that an overall wellbeing in the workplace was a major differentiator in us dying early in life or living into our 90’s. We swallow handfuls of diet supplements, drink 8-10 glasses of water a day, exercise and eat a nutritious diet all in an effort to maintain a healthy weight so that we avoid chronic diseases and rapid health decline. But all of those concerns will be for nothing if our jobs kill us first!
So how do you we keep our jobs and the security of a paycheck, while at the same time preventing the negative effects of work related stressors?
- Write down a few aspects about your job that you enjoy. Distill that lisdownt until you have three or four which you are able to involve yourself in every day. Talk to your boss and share with him or her your desire to embrace these projects, and make changes to better the entire business.
- Force yourself to smile. Several medical journals have reported that the action of smiling releases pleasurable endorphins in our bodies, and that chemical influx will promote a feeling of genuine happiness.
- Get to know those you work with. Not just their names, but discover what they enjoy doing in their off time. If possible, find a commonality between the two of you which you can participate in outside of the workplace.
- Acknowledge your boss or manager’s successes. People in a leadership or management role are often found promoting the efforts of their work staff, but fail to ever receive accolades of their own. Just because he or she is your boss doesn’t mean that you can’t say that you’re proud of them, or that they are making a difference. This quick and simple gesture has been known to invoke profound changes in the way we lead and interact with those around us!
- Be sure to laud the accomplishments of your co-workers as well. Be selfless in your praise! Recognize when someone does an astounding job, or goes above and beyond their required duties.
- And most importantly…HAVE FUN!
Every job has the potential to be enjoyable. It’s up to you to mold your attitude to support the needed changes in the workplace. Misery loves company. Hate your job, and those around you will soon develop a similar dislike. Love what you do, inject some humor, praise and excitement, and in exchange, they will reciprocate your passion with higher morale, production and enhanced business growth.
No person is immune from feelings of exhaustion and stress, but by following some of the suggestions I listed above, you can reduce your Sunday night spouts of anxiety. You’ll notice that more often than not, you wake up feeling energized, refreshed and are looking forward to the challenges of a new work day.
“Coming together is a beginning; keeping together is progress; working together is success!” ~Henry Ford
photo credit: BrittneyBush via photopin cc