Creating your most successful day at work starts with having a clear vision of what you want. Success is not about some kind of perfection or a magical intervention. Rather, it’s about maximizing your talents in the framework of your organization.
Think about those days when it felt like everything went right. Consider what was different. Maybe you enjoyed working with a particular group of people or got to do something different. You felt alive.
Sometimes, it’s about the absence of something, like nonstop interruptions or a time consuming process.
You may want to track your findings over a few weeks, so you’ll have an accurate picture of how to recreate your most successful day at work.
Then talk to your supervisor about what you learned and see if you can reproduce the positive situations. While this may seem intimidating, it’s a good idea to tell your boss under what circumstances you perform at your best.
There’s no guarantee anything will change and some positions come with a certain amount of chaos. But by sharing your findings, your supervisor is now armed with additional information, which could influence future projects or staffing decisions. Don’t expect your boss to magically know how you perform at your best.
It’s also important to have the discussion focus on your challenges. Your supervisor may decide your time consuming, low importance tasks may not be necessary or should be altered in your favor.
You may discover your productivity can vary due to personal factors. If you’re often tired on Friday, then that may not be the best day to perform highly detailed work. Find out if those tasks can be shifted to another time.
Different people perform well under different circumstances. Get out of the mindset of thinking of your job like it’s a one size fits all pair of pants. You want to stretch to be your best and not just to fit.
Time to bring Ken Okel to your next meeting?
