Find the Fun to Fuel Your Performance

Last weekend, I ran the “Beat the Blerch ” half marathon in Carnation, WA. A beautiful course in the woods at Tolt MacDonald Park. It was by far the most fun, and the best, race I’ve ever ran. Ambience is everything. And attitude is contagious. It takes the right kind of vibes to provide a feel-good, energy-rich atmosphere for a running event. This one had it all: aid stations stocked with cake, couches with funny messages along the course, and people in Blerch costume cheering you on, with a twist. The resounding message was: “the slower you are, the more you are celebrated.” It is quite surprising that with the encouragement to run my PW, personal worst, I actually ran my personal best. But it does make sense. Mounting evidence suggests that happy people are more productive and perform at a higher level. Thus, having fun had a profound effect on my performance.

Entertaining the idea that a sense of joy has the ability to enhance performance, consider how you are showing up in your life and at work. Can you imagine the outcomes you could achieve if your baseline of how you show up is from a place of joy? What if you shift focus from doing the job (task completion) to being at work (your presence as the best present.) Here’s the main difference between the two constructs: DOING refers to the deliverables of your responsibilities and duties, the outputs of your work. BEING, on the other hand, refers to your vibe at work, how you are communicating and connecting with others. Are you the office party pooper or a positive peer?

When we spend our time at work solely focused on tasks, we lose sight of the potential for fun. Now, fun can come in many forms, but at the core it means finding the joy in the little things and looking at the bright side of work life. Approach finding fun and joy at work as a proactive process. First, know what you enjoy and the factors that either increase or decrease joy in your work. Second, make joy at work a priority and find ways to create it. You can infuse joy into your career by deploying the 3 Cs: Clarity, Curiosity, and Creativity.

Clarity: understand what you want and need to love and enjoy your work (most of the time.)

Curiosity: look at work with curious eyes to identify opportunities for joy and satisfaction.

Creativity: find alternative ways to do things and complete monotonous tasks to allow room for joy.

I’ve never subscribed to the view that “your job defines you,” but I do believe that we define our jobs. We are responsible for the qualities we bring to the job – hard and soft skills. Why not set joy at work as a valid goal? Why not approach the time spent at work with the intention to enjoy what we do? When we have fun and find joy in our work, we are more likely to go the extra mile, connect with people more powerfully, and make a bigger impact. But no worries, if you are just not feeling it, it’s OK to fake it until you make it. Smile your way through the work day. Studies show that smiling can make us feel better. When we smile, we can make a positive difference, which is the real power of joy as a catalyst for positive change. A smile is like a lighthouse shining its beacon of light and hope into the world. Having hope opens up possibilities.

There are many ways to make an impact in this world. To think and act with a joyful mindset creates endless ripples - one smile, one encouraging word, and one helpful act at a time. True leaders are those that at any position can uplift, inspire, and motivate others. Joy is an expansive quality. It helps get people unstuck and generate forward motion. I am not talking about a Pollyannish demonstration of false positivity that ignores or minimizes real challenges. Choosing joy is a practice of recognizing the good even at those times that life feels heavier. It is about being active participants in our own life. We are only given one life to live. There are no pause, rewind, or fast forward buttons. The choice is in how we manage our circumstances to find joy in every moment to live our best life.?It is the ability to look at what isn’t working but still finding the joy and seeing the possibilities. The practice of feeling joy is like radiating sunshine. It feels good. And when we feel good, we perform better. And when we do our best, we inspire others to do better and be better.

A job, by definition, is not always enjoyable. At times it can be extremely busy and hard. One of the most important lessons of long-term career success is learning to bear up, to remain positive during difficult times and in the face of adversity. Here’s the thing, winners brighten a room by entering, bringing in positive energy. Whiners brighten a room by leaving. To become the colleague that people seek out and want to be around, re-calibrate your mindset to find the positive and remain upbeat. Mind your mindset! Make it a habit to look at the bright side and find the humor in everything. Grab joy wherever you find it, in nature, in interesting projects, in talking to people with positive vibes, in listening to music, or doing things that lift your spirit. Deliberate practice of intentionally seeking out and cultivating joy will help you calibrate your mindset to hope and opportunity. In the same way professional athletes need to fuel their bodies for peak performance, all professionals must fuel their mind with positivity for career success. Choose to be joyful and approach every day and its set of challenges with an open mind, a joyful heart, and cheerful disposition. Ignite a positive ripple.