Managing Morale
Managing Morale
By Liz Jazwiec, RN, President, Liz Jazwiec Consulting, Crestwood, IL
In the last column, I talked about taking responsibility for our own morale. At the end of the article I suggested some steps to take in order to feel better about work and increase job satisfaction. Today I will discuss some of these steps in depth.
The first step is making the decision to be happy. Happiness is a choice not an outcome. If we sit back and wait for others to make us happy, surely we will be disappointed. It is not our boss, coworkers, organization, or patients that make us happy or unhappy.
Think about someone that you work with that is always in a good mood. When you see his or her name on the schedule you are always pleased. He or she gets along with all of patients, doctors, and even other departments. This individual takes things calmly, is always approachable, and generally fun to work with. Can most of you think of at least one person that you work with that fits this description? If you can, then spend a moment contemplating this: Does he or she work for a different hospital than you do? Is he or she reporting to a different boss? Is his or her patient load different? I think you see my point.
In looking further, if you know much about this person’s homelife, is it effortless for him or her to be happy at work because he or she has things easier at home than we do? I doubt it. In my experience, the individual who is happy at work may also face difficulties at home (i.e., sick parents, financial problems, single parenting, etc.). Perhaps these individuals have developed better coping skills, or maybe they just do a little better at seeing the bigger picture.
I believe that if you make the commitment to be happy at work, you will find that it is easier than you think it might be . . . and the rewards far outweigh the effort. We spend a tremendous amount of time at work, far too much time to spend miserable and distressed. And, if we have to work for the next 10, 20, or 30 years, that is a long, long time to be unhappy.
Which leads us to step number two: Plan your career. A full-time employee spends more than 2,000 hours a year at work and approximately 80 hours a year on vacation. We spend about 15 hours a year planning our vacations, talking about them, searching the web, researching localities, checking costs, and making travel arrangements.
The average healthcare employee spends less than one hour per year in planning their careers. I believe that we should spend at least the same amount of time on our career as we do planning our vacations. Commit to thinking about your job; decide if you really like what you are doing. Will you continue to like it in the next 10 years? What would make your worklife more enjoyable?
We don’t need to be trapped in our jobs, it may seem so at times, but we really do control our destiny. This doesn’t mean we should jump from job to job, but with planning, it is possible to redirect your career. If you are unhappy, now it is unlikely that anything will occur in the future that will make you enjoy your job. Start thinking about what you would like to do differently and then start on the path. It may take five or 10 years but, in the long run, you will be much happier. You will also find that once you take control of your future, your day-to-day worklife feels better. It becomes easier once you know that your destiny is in your hands and not in the hands of others.
My third suggestion is to get out and interview. Whether you are happy in your current position or not, I believe it is very important for everyone to interview annually. The reason I think this is so beneficial is that it is good for us to understand our position in the job market. Many individuals have been in their positions a long time or have worked for the same organization for their entire career.
The best time to interview is when you do not need to do so. If you have been in your current position for some time, you might not be used to answering common interview questions, or meeting with several people in the selection process. Both of these things can be pretty intimidating to someone that has not been on an interview in many years. Better to practice interviewing when you are comfortable in your current position. You will also gain an understanding of what other employers seek in a candidate. Some people find that there is much more opportunity out there then they imagined, others find that life is actually pretty good right where they are. Many individuals realize through interviewing what experiences or education they need in order to move into a new position.
No matter what the outcome of interviewing, it helps bring perspective to our current position. It also lets us again feel as though we have control by having options. Some people find an opportunity that they never would have considered taking until they were presented with an offer. Others understand that no organization is perfect, there is not a utopia out there and the grass is not necessarily greener on the other side.
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