Lately, there seems to be a pattern of people expressing how they don’t feel joy at work. Previously, you might have always been happy with your job, but sometimes that joy doesn’t quite stick. When you lose that joy in your work, it makes it incredibly hard to do more than just go through the paces. The question now is, “how to find joy at work again?” 

Leaders across a range of industries - leaders who have always loved their jobs - have recently been describing feeling a sort of blandness, or lack of emotion when it comes to their work. 

As this Harvard Business Review describes, “People say they are happy to be back and are optimistic about the future, they face an odd kind of inertia on their teams: Priorities are fuzzy, progress is slow, and social interactions feel somewhat awkward. Indeed, when I asked a senior leadership team to give a “weather report” on the energy of their team, the description that resonated with them the most was “bland with frantic bursts.”

Is the pandemic to blame? Or is it something deeper? And most importantly, how can we break out of this lull? 

Is it a lack of joy, pandemic flux syndrome, or something else?

This isn’t the first time we’ve spoken about this aimless, joyless state many employees describe experiencing. From burnout to increased pressure, this extended period of uncertainty has left us “in the void between depression and flourishing” as Adam Grant recently observed in his viral New York Times article. “It’s the absence of well-being. You don't have symptoms of mental illness, but you're not the picture of mental health either. You're not functioning at full capacity.” While Grant dubbed this sense of malaise as  “languishing,” social psychologist Amy Cuddy prefers to describe it as “pandemic flux syndrome.” Whatever you call it, all signs point to a collective shift in motivation that leaders and HR departments need to address head on. 

Leadology's 3 Tips to Help You Get Your Joy Back at Work

So how do we go about getting our joy back? It’s a big question, we know. But there are three tangible tactics that can begin to help you and your team bring more joy into your work starting as soon as Monday. 

1. Tap into your strengths 

   Strengths are your natural superpowers. Contrary to popular belief, a strength is not merely something you are good at. In fact, it might be something you aren’t good at yet. It might be just a predilection, something you find so intrinsically satisfying that you look forward to doing it again and again and getting better at it over time. Understanding what naturally satisfies you is the quickest way to experience an energy boost and feelings of motivation. 

2. Help employees feel a sense of purpose beyond a paycheck  

   Here are some questions to ask yourself and your team to help them reconnect with your purpose: How do you want to have an impact? Who is relying on you? What affirmations or compliments are important to you? How can time and tasks be adjusted to better align with your strengths and passions? Who are you learning from? What do you want to learn? What are you contributing to? You can read more in the above article on the importance of connecting employees to purpose. 

3. Show appreciation
   After working with organizations around the world, one of the most powerful things I’ve seen positively transform company culture is learning to celebrate successes, both big and small. From broadcasting happiness to taking a gratitude pause, learning to show appreciation is a practice that can immediately help you ignite more joy, engagement, and creativity at work. Remember - praise and appreciation are far more important than criticism.

Joy in the Workplace Starts with the Leader

It’s not about striving for perfection or suddenly flipping a switch. Instead, as I’ve seen with my work with clients right now, it’s about being able to tap into strengths, feel a sense of purpose, and celebrate the small wins that can move us away from overload and towards levity. 

Looking for ways to help energize, engage, and activate your team? Leadology offers Manager Success Roadmap during a free 30 minute strategy session, for small business owners, managers, and other workplace leaders. Fill in an application here for access to this calendar!

When you support yourself and your team using these tactics you will be able to see how to find joy at work again for both yourself and your team. It takes a great leader to support and demonstrate what a great workplace feels like and your team will be happier and more productive in turn.