Hey y'all, Did you read my letter this week? TL;DR: To be happier at work we need to craft our work so we spend the majority of our time on work the leverages our core strengths. The questions are:  Firstly, are you crystal clear on what your strengths are? If not, you should do that first. Initially, I recommend taking the StrengthsFinder 2.0 and the Authentic Happiness test (my results below). Secondly, are you continually assessing and aligning your work with those strengths (recrafting your work)? As with all of these types of assessments, it’s good to verify the results, and Seligman provides a set of helpful criteria to confirm if these truly are your ‘signature strengths’: A sense of ownership and authenticity ("This is the real me") A feeling of excitement while displaying it, especially at first A rapid learning curve as the strength is first practiced Continuous learning of new ways to enact your strength A sense of yearning to find ways to use it A feeling of inevitability in using the strength ("Try and stop me") Invigoration rather than exhaustion while using the strength The creation and pursuit of personal projects that revolve around it Joy, zest, enthusiasm, even ecstasy while using it. Seligman writes:"If one or more of these apply to your top strengths, they are signature strengths. Use them as frequently as you can and in as many settings. If none of the signature criteria apply to one or two of your strengths, they may not be aptitudes you want to deploy…”What I've learned about myself is that I get frustrated when I don’t have time to do what fills me up: reading and researching, going deep into new topics, joining up what I’m learning, writing and developing my own ideas, and then teaching what I’m learning to a group of people that truly want to learn. And so, when we’re unhappy at work, instead of thinking we need to find a new job, the first best thing to do is to consider our strengths, look at the work we’re doing, and ask ourselves: How do I feel when I don’t get enough time at work to apply my strengths to the work I’m doing? As a percentage, how much of my time is spent putting my strengths to work in a valuable way? What’s one thing I can do to ‘recraft’ my work so I can increase the percentage of time spent putting my strengths to work? Naturally, over time, things will slip and you’ll find yourself continually checking in on your work and what you are spending your time doing, making sure it’s aligned as much as reasonably possible with your strengths.  You have more control over this than you perhaps think you do, and I encourage you to take total ownership and responsibility for this and get active in your own pursuit of happiness at work. Don’t expect anyone to do it for you: Do the assessments and get to know yourself better Recraft your work to suit your strengths Continually check in and come back to these questions Take ownership of what you are spending your time doing at work And if you are a manager of people, know this: people will stay longer if their strengths are recognized and used in a valuable way.Marr's StrengthsFinder 2.0 Strengths Learner Intellection Relator Input Connectedness Marr's Authentic Happiness Strengths:  Your Top Strength - Love of learningYou love learning new things, whether in a class or on your own. You have always loved school, reading, and museums-anywhere and everywhere there is an opportunity to learn. Your Second Strength- Modesty and humilityYou do not seek the spotlight, preferring to let your accomplishments speak for themselves. You do not regard yourself as special, and others recognize and value your modesty. Strength #3 - Perspective wisdomAlthough you may not think of yourself as wise, your friends hold this view of you. They value your perspective on matters and turn to you for advice. You have a way of looking at the world that makes sense to others and to yourself. Strength #4 - Curiosity and interest in the worldYou are curious about everything. You are always asking questions, and you find all subjects and topics fascinating. You like exploration and discovery. Strength #5 - Creativity, ingenuity, and originalityThinking of new ways to do things is a crucial part of who you are. You are never content with doing something the conventional way if a better way is possible. I'd love to get to know you better - what are your core strengths and how are you leveraging them at work? DFTBA!Chris. 

Chris Marr

March 10 at 02:39pm

Hey folks :) What’s the single biggest fear or concern you have about the future of your career, and what are you working on right now that’s helping solve for that?As always, I'm keen to hear what you're working on to advance and build your career. Jump into the comments with what's front of mind for you :) Chris. 

Chris Marr

February 22 at 12:09pm

The 10X rule by Grant Cardone.  It really made me realise that to make an impact doing anything, you need to do it a lot more times than you think. In fact, 10 x's more. 

Chris Marr

February 10 at 07:22pm

Hey coaches! Let’s talk about how we’re growing, and if there’s something we need to change in our life to feel like we’re growing: Do you feel like you are being challenged in your work right now? Do you feel like you are growing? What’s something you could do that really challenges you? I'd love to hear from you in the comments :)Chris. 

Chris Marr

February 8 at 01:17pm

Chris Marr  thanks very much! I did add my super old work history elements just to make it easy for folks since they're doing me a favor. 

Winnie Anderson

February 1 at 03:06pm

Love this post and all of the issues you've raised here! Since I have a background in HR/OD (former HR director with a master's in HR and past certification as a SPHR) I could go on all day about this stuff. (Part of my HR career included recruiting for the Marketing division of a past employer.)I think job one is to get rid of the title of "salesperson". The whole point of a buyer-first approach to marketing is no one is selling. They're helping prospects make decisions...to find solutions and to help them choose the right solution for them.So that means the staff-formerly-known-as-salesperson should have a new title. I recommend "Solution Consultant" because that's actually what should be happening. They act as a consultant to the (qualified) potential buyer.That means that the compensation strategy likely needs to change in order to reward the right behavior. If a salesperson/solution consultant's personal revenue (aka "salary") is generated from commissions then you're rewarding "selling" behavior and not consulting behavior. I recommend a bonus pool and every employee is a recipient of a bonus at some level. Afterall, if you're attempting to build a true team environment, everyone is playing a role in the overall success of the business so everyone is working to either (directly or indirectly) attract, delight, or retain clients. Part of onboarding and ongoing employee communication needs to include helping team members understand the business' vision/mission and strategy...understand how all the departments work together to fulfill those things...and understand how they and their job (and those are two different things) support the achievement of success as the clients define it and as the business defines it.** I say that "they and their job" are two different things because helping the employee recognize they are NOT their job can help reduce defensiveness in receiving feedback.Support skill development including self-management. Part of this requires ongoing communication inside the organization. Help employees stay plugged in to how things are changing (especially with tech) and how those changes can/could impact the organization, its clients (remember we have to help staff stay focused on the overall work of attracting, delighting, and retaining clients) and how they can continue to evolve in their own abilities so they continue to stay valuable to the organization and to themselves. (Heaven forbid something should happen and there is a voluntary or involuntary separation but when folks realize they are NOT their jobs and they have transferable skills they can use elsewhere, they are more likely to be able to stay positive and land their next gig.)Performance Reviews need to change. With ongoing feedback, no one feels surprised. When great people are brought in, effectively onboarded, continuously communicated with, and given feedback in a safe environment with a coaching approach then improvement is seen as something that's ongoing. All humans want and need to reach their fullest potential. Managers need to hone their ability to provide feedback in a supportive way and everyone needs to see that working on their own self-management includes the ability to give and receive feedback in a healthy way. I could go on (maybe I'll come back and post more later) but I have to get back to work :-) Funny, because I've been thinking a lot lately about if and how to blend my HR-side with my brand strategy side.Happy to talk about this or be a resource for the conversation.

Chris Marr

January 11 at 09:29pm