We send Valentines Day cards to people to express our love and appreciation – but send one to our work? Seems odd, yet we use phrases such as “love your work”, do what you love”, or “I love my job”, so why not? Now granted, our work is an inanimate object so typical Valentines Day messages don’t exactly fit. So, I propose we write our own!
Wait a minute, you might say…I don’t exactly love my job. Well, let’s go back to people. There are some people that could be described as “easier” to love than others – they may have more likable attributes or similar interests or values. We may prefer to spend less time with them. But can we still love them? Appreciate their positive qualities and contributions? Care for them? Absolutely!
And so it is with work. Learn to love your work – no matter what kind of work you do! Do you know who presumably said, “Mr. President (Kennedy), I help put people on the moon”? The janitor at NASA! Clearly, all types of work are necessary to make an organization be successful. There are so many opportunities for us to share our gifts and talents! So how can you learn to love your work?
- For starters, decide to find aspects of your work that you enjoy or appreciate. For the next several days, write down 3 tasks or interactions with colleagues you enjoyed or are grateful for.
- Next, recognize and value your work’s contribution to a larger goal or service. The janitor at NASA is someone who appreciated their contribution to an organization, and a society, in achieving a valuable goal.
I have spent some time clarifying how I love my work – especially on those days when it’s not so easy to love. It has helped me craft my Valentines Day message for work and I encourage you to give it a try. Here’s mine – I hope it helps you write your own::
Dear Work,
I am so grateful that I can freely use my skills and passion for helping people when I am with you! I love how you help me learn and grow personally and professionally. I enjoy being a part of a solution for high quality, affordable health care. And I love how you have brought wonderful new people into my world.
I’ll admit, I struggled with the execution of this idea. It feels awkward! But I urge you to move beyond the awkwardness because doing so can help you see all the reasons how you can love your work even when it isn’t always lovely.