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Feel like a ‘square peg in a round hole’ at work? Part 2
Recapping last fortnight’s article, I introduced you to Sally who was feeling like a square peg in a round hole at work following her employer’s recent takeover and restructure. The role Sally had previously enjoyed was now completely the opposite leaving her feeling unmotivated, agitated and very unhappy.
The three areas that we covered (namely: physical environment, relationships and job functions) can play a significant role in whether someone is happy or not in their work.
Prior to handing in her notice, Sally’s last attempt was to speak to me, to see whether any of our coaching programs could support her in reclaiming control, enjoyment, satisfaction and fulfilment in her career. Through completing our Career Directions program she embarked on a journey of self-discovery and was able to uncover a number of things about herself that she had not been aware of.
The exercises and activities allowed her to pinpoint the reasons why she was no longer happy in her job, and, more importantly, enabled her to put into place action steps to ensure she could once again, regain meaning and fulfilment in her work.
Here are just a few of the things she did:
Physical Environment
Your physical workplace is very important and can either help or hinder your job satisfaction and overall work performance levels.
Sally’s current office had only one window (that she couldn’t look out of) and was near a thoroughfare with lots of hustle and bustle and loud conversation and laughter being a constant interruption. A far cry from her previous office which had many windows and faced a park with flora that was often in bloom. As part of her role was to create marketing content for the ad campaigns her department ran, she found the scenery and quiet setting of her previous work space very inspirational. She realised she needed a quiet setting to spark her creativity while also allowing her to recharge her batteries - unlike the constant noise and interruptions that she was currently experiencing.
Relationships
Establishing strong bonds and having solid relationships with colleagues, customers and suppliers in the workplace is important.
Many of Sally’s former colleagues had either left or had been moved to other locations. The new staff members were not including her in their conversations, leaving her to feel rather alienated. They were also more boisterous and louder in their interactions with one another – quite the opposite of her former team, so this was also contributing to her unease.
Sally realised that her previous colleagues were similar in nature to herself– being more introverted and quiet. The team now was more extroverted in their approach and enjoyed continued conversation and interaction with one another – even during their lunch breaks. Sally preferred to eat her lunch in a quiet spot, either reading a book or just being able to sit and think about what had happened during the day and what was coming up for the rest of the day.
Job Functions
Sally recognised that the job functions she was performing now were of little interest and challenge to her, and were very team oriented. Being someone who preferred to work alone on more challenging projects, she could she that her current situation was draining her of the energy and creativity she required to perform appropriately.
Outcome:
With this information, Sally met with her supervisor (who knew and respected her) to see whether anything could be done.
Fortunately, her supervisor had seen that she was not working up to her high standards, and after speaking to Sally recognised that Sally’s current environment had been stifling her creativity and performance. Not wanting to lose a valuable employee, Sally was relocated back to her original office and was re-allocated many of her tasks and functions that had been given to other staff. Interestingly, Sally’s supervisor had thought that he was alleviating the pressure on Sally by allocating these functions to other staff members; however it had had the opposite effect.
Sally recognised that even though she would be stepping out of her comfort zone, she would have to undertake some strategic relationship building efforts with her new colleagues. To support her in doing this, she planned to meet with each of the team members individually, so that she could ‘break the ice’ and begin forming bonds on a one-to-one basis – something which she felt much more comfortable with. Also, to continue strengthening the collegial relationships, she decided she would begin eating lunch in the cafeteria with her colleagues at least once they got to a stage where they knew each other better. She could always excuse herself and spend the second half hour of her lunch break in her office to recharge her batteries with some quiet ‘alone’ activities.
I touched based with Sally a few months later and was pleased to learn that she was once again enjoying her role and was in fact being considered for a promotion!
If you are experiencing similar issues at work, reading Sally’s story will hopefully provide you with some insight into the areas you should begin to investigate.
Is your work environment, relationships, and/or job functions aligned with your career interests, values and personal style/preference – all crucial elements that you should be totally clear about when making decisions within your career? What steps can you take to change your current situation? If you are interested in completing our Career Directions Program, we are offering a 20% dis*count for the first 10 Career Communiqué subscribers. Contact me to find out how you can take advantage of this s*pecial offer at: info@a-e-c.com.au
Continued success! Till next fortnight!
To your success!
Annemarie
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