Americans Aren't Happy at Work. What To Do?
Marla Gottschalk, Ph.D.
Helping teams & organizations evolve with confidence.
We seem to be working longer hours with greater intensity, yet for many of us feeling satisfied with our work lives has proven elusive. While we continue to invest more time and energy into our careers — we somehow remain disconnected from our work. We express that we are pushing far too hard, yet according to recent research we often leave our vacation time on the table. It seems that for every important aspect of our work lives, there is a study telling us that we just aren't getting it right.
Disheartened with what I read concerning how we feel about our work, we have to ask: What is really going on here and how can we fix it?
As described in this HBR post, exploring how organizations struggle to make sense of "Big Data" — information about our work lives seems plentiful — yet much needed insights concerning how to conclusively solve what is "ailing us" are rare. If we are to impact the larger happiness/ engagement question, it might be the right moment to take stock and pause for deeper reflection.
Let's hold the presses and concentrate on "connecting the dots" with what we have learned.
Where we might look:
- Accept that our relationship with work is personal. This notion is not rocket science — how we view our work is filtered through our own gifts, personalities and experiences. As such, "One size fits all" workplaces are a thing of the past. Let's embrace individual needs and stop debating common sense. What constitutes meaningful work is dependent on the individual, as evidenced by the importance of the Psychological Contract — so let's move forward and integrate this into how we view our own work and how we craft management strategy.
- Re-examine work-life integration. There is little hope of "work-life balance" if we can't even begin to integrate the two worlds effectively. Although it is well documented that we all require "down time" to stay fresh and focused, many of us simply cannot secure quality time away from our work. Let's explore realistic options to help employees seek the balance they require, so our work lives can become sustainable.
- Consider that managers might hold the key. Identifying the myriad of problems in workplaces doesn't seem to be the challenge. However, we may have overlooked that our first line of defense could be the pivotal role that managers play in our work lives. The best news? The puzzle as to what constitutes a great manager may be more easily solved than we might have thought. The real challenge? Moving people out of managerial roles who don't belong there — and putting the right people in place.
What are we missing in the work life happiness conversation? What should we do concretely to make Americans fall back in love with their work? Weigh in with your ideas here. I'll put your suggestions together in a future post.
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Related Posts:
When It's Time to Go: A Look at the Psychological Contract
Why Great Managers Really Matter
Dr. Marla Gottschalk is an Industrial/Organizational Psychologist. She also writes The Office Blend.
Photo: Blend Images - Jade / Getty Images
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10 年Now days I've witness,a lot of pressure from company people,longer work hours,cutting the workforce. Also way to much demand & discrimation among worker & company. Playing favoritism with workers. Unions not fighting for the union employees that pays their dues then receives nothing in return. Equal pay-treatment-respect. There's no ( I ) in team !!!! If companies would add to the workforce,that would take away the forced overtime,accidents,& pure pressure,no more discrimation!!!!! Then maybe employees would feel better about working.
Talent Development Professional - Retired
10 年Your article is short, but challenging. Thank you.
Everything at Evil
10 年How do we deal with the problem of managers who shouldn't be in their position? The article brings up the question but doesn't seem to answer. If you're in a company with the old "ladder of success" model that promotes people who are more properly "specialists" into roles where they are managing people despite being inept at it (or not really even desirous of the responsibility), how do we solve the problems that can be created? Managerial training programs can be helpful but they don't always work for everyone. Do you then wait until the negative feedback and turnover in that manager's team gets so bad it can't be ignored? How do you tell someone who's been given a manager position that they need to move into a different role because they aren't good at managing people, and then get that person to stay with the company? Especially when the specialist, technical manager or project manager roles some companies have can seem like career dead-ends to those with high (albeit possibly unrealistic) aspirations?
Sales Leader | Strategic Business Development | Talent & Leadership Coach | Passionate About Driving Growth and Empowering Teams
10 年Many people think to be a manger you must make you employees get things done, when in reality you must inspire them to want to get things done. It can be a hard lesson to learn and requires a specific skill set. Employees that have great mangers perform better and find happiness in their professional lives, which correlates to their personal well-being.
This is so true. I think part of it has to do with technology. We are all so glued to our emails.