Job Crafting

SELF-COACHING EXERCISE: JOB CRAFTING

I came across this exercise today and realized that I have been doing this for most of my career - not knowing that there was a name or a more intentional way to approach this.

About ten years ago, I was at a critical career crossroads. I had become disillusioned with my field. I had a general feeling of dissatisfaction with my job but couldn't put my finger on it. I even began to wonder if this field that I had felt such a strong pull into at the start of my career had run its course.

The exercise that is described below is the analysis I used to unpack what was happening in my inner and outer worlds. Give this a try and see what comes up for you. I'll share my findings next week!

"Job Crafting" was developed by The Center for Positive Organizations. It is about altering your job in order for it to better suit your personality, skills, and interests; thereby increasing your job satisfaction. One simple way to begin the process of job crafting is to pay attention to your emotions throughout the day. Note the tasks/activities you are doing and your feelings about them. Try analyzing a few days at your workplace: What are your typical patterns at work? How much interaction do you have with co-workers, clients, customers or supervisors? Is it enough, too much or too little? What are your strengths, motives and passions? How congruent is your current job with your best strengths? After you've analyzed what you do and how you feel about it, begin to look for ways you could improve the areas where you are currently unsatisfied to ensure that your job better matches who you really are.

Take a week to complete this exercise then note your insights in the comments section below.