Alphabet Soup: The A-Z Of Workplace Happiness (Part Two)

It’s time for part two of my A-Z of workplace happiness.

Before I get into what letters I to M stand for (I know you are all dying to know!) I need to tell you something important.

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I is for inclusivity. Being accepted for who you are is easier for some of us than others. If we fit the typical mould for our role or organisation, it’s much easier to feel included. If we don’t fit that typical profile for whatever reason, it can be much harder to feel accepted and included at work. An inclusive and diverse workforce makes an organisation a great place to work. When everyone embraces difference, it becomes a driver of success.?

J is for joy. A recent survey showed that 90% of people expect to experience a significant degree of joy at work but only 37% did. That’s a 53% joy gap. To close this joy gap businesses need to become more intentional about investing in the happiness of their people.

K is for kindness. Committing an act of kindness is a sure way of creating a happiness boost - for you and the recipient. Sometimes opportunities to be kind present themselves and we just need to be brave enough to grab them, sometimes we need to be more courageous and create those opportunities for ourselves. Often we find this easier outside the workplace, because historically kindness hasn’t been at the top of the business skills list! When was the last time you took the opportunity to be kind to someone at work? It only has to be a small gesture, for example checking in with someone who’s new, taking time to ask how a new parent is getting on, or leaving a thank you note on someone’s desk.

L is for listening. In order to feel valued, included, and in turn happy, at work, people need to feel listened to. Listening should be active - put down your phone, make eye contact and give the conversation your full attention. Make sure you take time to really hear what the person is saying, play back key points to check you’ve really understood them. And don’t forget, if you promise to do something following a conversation make sure you do it - and let the person know that you have too.?

M is for mindset. Our mind is one of our most powerful assets. It can work for us, to make great things happen, but it can sometimes work against us too, putting barriers in our way and overcomplicating situations. Once we start to understand a bit more about how our brains work, and discover the things we can do to help them work in our favour, our mindset can be our greatest advantage. Tapping into how your brain naturally reacts to situations is a great starting point. When we become more in tune with how we respond in certain situations, we can start to train our brain to spot the warning signs of a negative response and reroute our brain to take a more positive path.?

So that’s part two of my A-Z of workplace happiness, the final instalment will be with you next month. That will be my final LinkedIn newsletter so don’t forget to sign up to my mailing list* to keep receiving my articles (plus lots more great content) - and by doing so you’ll also get my FREE happiness at work guide.

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