Cherishing your work time

Most people have a natural tendency towards leisure. That’s why work can seem hard at times, particularly when it gets tedious, hard or boring. Also, in our work time, we may feel lonely at times, as we are away from our families and loved ones.

However, I have come to the realization that it’s important to cherish our work time. This work time precludes our leisure time. In order to be able to play, we need to work first. Our intention for happiness should be to maximize our leisure time, by taking full advantage of it and by being as happy as we can during that time. In order to do so, we must ensure that we pave the way for it to be the most relaxing time possible, without any work worries or stress influences of any unfinished work.

That is why it’s important to work well in the time that we have allocated for work, focusing on our priorities, minimizing distractions and overcoming any feelings that can negatively impact our productivity (like feeling overwhelmed, stressed or disinterested ). After all, time is short, even though it might seem long when you do something you do not enjoy. The danger is that if you let it slip and don’t maximise your work hours to get done everything you need to, it will carry into your leisure time (aCherising your work time (second recording)s work will still need to be completed either in the allocated hours or beyond), which will ultimately affect your happiness.

Here are my top 5 strategies to get myself to cherish my work time:

1. Appreciate work as a time of self-development

   Even though we spend nearly a third of our lives in school, we get the most of our learning from doing the actual job. So, even if you might not enjoy your work that much, appreciate the opportunity to learn something. Even if you are in a job where you feel like you are not learning anything, subconsciously you are. You are leaning how to interact with other people in a work environment and how to use the tools that facilitate your work. If you have already learnt all of these things, think that you are perfecting them. If you find that you are doing the same things over and over again, think about the fact that practice makes perfect and you are becoming really efficient at doing what you need to do, which in turn will enable you to finish work quicker and enjoy leisure time sooner. It’s a great feeling knowing that you have been productive during your work time and have given your absolute best, which has gained you the leisure time in which you can be happy again.

2. Think about your leisure

   We all work to be able to play (when work is finished). Oftentimes, to get myself motivated at work, I think about how I will enjoy myself in the time I’ve earned for my leisure. For instance, I plan how I will enjoy myself in my cozy home or I look forward to attending any events or activities that I may have coming up after work.

3. Day-dream and role-play

   This is a great strategy for getting yourself through a task that you are not enjoying, feel overwhelmed by or don’t have enough motivation to complete. We’ve all been there, when we’ve had to produce endless reports, analyses or documents that we do not see the value of. In situations like these, I day-dream that I have my own business and that I am doing the things that need to be done in order to move forward with my business. Just by changing our perspective on things, we can really improve our motivation. When you think that instead of doing a report for your boss, think instead that you are doing it for yourself, for the thing that you are trying to create.

4. Type faster

   The mind follows the body, so if you find yourself in a sluggish, slow-mode situation, in which you do not have enough motivation to work efficiently, you can play this simple trick on your mind: start typing faster. It’s quite magical, but as soon as I start typing faster, I notice my thoughts galloping away to keep up. A simple trick, which works wonders every time. If only I were a naturally fast typist…

5. Use happiness artifacts

   A great way to enjoy your time at work is to make your workspace as inviting and inspiring as possible. In my home office, I have surrounded my desk by natural light, coming from the big window in front of me and the two smaller ones on each side. My desk space has a great layout I feel so happy when it’s a sunny day and I look outside into the sunshine, feeling instantly energized and motivated. Equally, when it’s a gloomy day, I still feel happy looking out of the window from my desk, while sipping my coffee and feeling cozy and sheltered. Apart from plenty of natural light, I like to surround myself with the things that make me happy - my happiness artifacts: good coffee, flowers, plants, candles, reed diffusers and a picture of my loved ones.

Hope these strategies will enable you to cherish your work time. Like any time, the time we spend at work is so precious and we should not let it slip away un-lived…

How do you cherish your time at work? Give us inspiration by leaving your comments below.