How to develop greater connection to your work

Connecting to, and enjoying your work can be easy for some and difficult for others. There are so many factors that can impact how much you connect with the work you do, such as your career stage, proper job fit, etc. etc., but regardless of where you are, there are things that you can do to enhance your enjoyment of your work.

It’s something you may…or may not have heard before.

The answer is: spending more time working in your strengths.

And, if it’s something you’ve heard about but never considered or tried before, I urge you to reconsider.

You see, in the workplace, there’s often a focus on weaknesses. A focus to build up weakness so they’re no longer weaknesses. There’s a LOT of development time spent on weaknesses.

We tend not to spend the same amount of time on strengths. Yet, this is an area of MOST opportunity. We can move the needle far higher when we focus on weaknesses than strengths.

“People have several times more potential for growth when they invest energy in developing their strengths instead of correcting their deficiencies.” — Tom Rath Strengths Finder 2.0

You see, spending time in areas where we are ‘weaker’ can drain you, exhaust you and it can erode confidence.

Spending time in areas of strength energizes you, leaves you feeling satisfied, fulfilled and leads to greater confidence.

So how do you spend more time using your strengths?……Turn your strengths into habits.

“Focus on your strengths instead of your weaknesses, on your powers instead of your problems.” – Paul Meyers

Here are some suggestions:

1) Learn your strengths and weaknesses.

When I ask people about their weaknesses, they can rhyme them off, no problem. When it comes to their strengths, I’m often met with silence and a furrowed brow.

Know what you’re good at. Spend some time putting names to your strengths so you can articulate them.

If you struggle with this, consider: What feedback have you received, in the past, from co-workers or managers? What have family or friends said you’re good at?

What could you spend hours doing? Do you ever lose track of time when you are doing certain things? Consider what you are doing in these moments….this will lead you to some of your strengths.

2) Focus on these strengths.

Now that you know them, use them.

How can you incorporate more of your strengths into your day-to-day role? Lean into them. Find ways to spend more time on those tasks. And, find ways to become even stronger in those areas.

3) Contribute.

To build from the previous point, find ways to contribute by using your strengths and going beyond what you do day-to-day, in ways you possibly aren’t doing now. Are there other projects or initiatives that you can become involved with in order to use your newly identified strengths?

4) If you are an employee, work with your Manager.

Share with your direct Manager your thoughts on what you do well and how you would like to lean into your work using your strengths more often. Your manager may have ideas to support you.

5) Reduce your time spent on weaknesses.

Find ways to limit using your weaknesses. What might be a weakness for you might be a strength for someone else. Explore your options here to spend less time in your weaknesses. Could you swap tasks with a colleague - your weaker-area-tasks could be their strengths-area-tasks and vice versa.

Could you work with your manager (as noted above) to adjust your role? Or, you may decide to only spend short amounts of time in your ‘weakness’ focussed tasks and consciously spend more time in your strengths-based tasks. The ideas could be endless here and as unique and specific as each individual.

Or, if you are a business owner, could you hire or outsource some tasks that just aren’t aligned to your talents? Who on your team could benefit from supporting you in these areas? Even though we CAN muddle through certain tasks, it doesn’t mean we SHOULD…

“Our studies indicate that people who do have the opportunity to focus on their strengths every day are six times as likely to be engaged in their jobs and more than three times as likely to report having an excellent quality of life in general.” — Tom Rath Strengths Finders 2.0

These practices are great to keep in mind for your own development, but also those of your people if you are a manager or leader.

NOW is YOUR time.

Ariana

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