Gratitude applied to my job has the same sort of effects as gratitude for my house does. It can flip resentment, procrastination and resistance into pleasure, motivation and drive. When I take the time to feel grateful for a productive day, it sets me up to be more likely to make the next day productive.
Last week I wrote about my challenges and solutions for dealing with too much to do at work. I thought it would be a fitting time to remind myself of everything that I am grateful for about my job.
Let me be frank: I don’t have my perfect dream job. I’d love to make a living as a writer or musician or be paid to travel the world or perhaps to pet little kittens or baby rabbits. I’m rather partial to rabbits too. I don’t feel that I’m necessarily contributing to some higher good by helping to make sure that land ownership in counties if accurately mapped for tax assessment purposes. There are parts of my job that I don’t like.
Gratitude for the parts that I do like is more important than dwelling on the parts that I don’t. Mapping land ownership may not be a passion of mine. But I have the opportunity each day to help other people with their jobs, to train them, to help things run a little smoother for them, to diagnose problems so that they have one less thing to stress about. Each time I answer a support call, I have the opportunity to make somebody’s day a little bit better.
My work is much more than a job to me. It even goes beyond being a career. My work blurs the lines a little between working for myself and working for a small family company. Either way I look at it, I have a deep sense of ownership, responsibility and pride in my work uniquely common to entrepreneurs. I have been working at my current job for almost nine years and I am grateful for all that I have learned in that time and for feeling like I finally almost really know what I am doing now! I am very grateful to really care about my business and customers.
Speaking of my customers, I am grateful for them too. I try to keep in mind that they are the people that make my work and lifestyle possible. Beyond that, they are always friendly and welcoming when I am in their offices.
My job also gives me the opportunity to be the sort of person I want to be- creative, diligent, hard-working, and a bit perfectionist. It gives me the opportunity to grow. I have opportunities to contribute. I can experiment and come up with new ideas.
I am also thankful that I am able to travel and see places I wouldn’t otherwise see. I have been able to see so many places in Texas and Oklahoma that I never would have gone to if I wasn’t working out there. I am afforded flexibility and freedom. I can take time off when I want it. I answer mostly only to myself (which is actually good and bad, but I can choose to focus on the good aspects).
And yes, I am grateful for the money I earn from my job. That money means security, comfort, bills paid, freedom, travel, fun, being able to give gifts to others, and the occasional purchase of things that I enjoy. I am fortunate to be able to honestly say that if money wasn’t a concern, I would continue doing the work that I do. I might not put in as many hours at it and take on some of the projects that I do now, but I would still want to continue with many aspects of it.
Gratitude helps me to perform better. When I’m grateful for the opportunities that I have, I am more likely to make the most of them. Remembering how lucky I am to have a job where I pretty much get to work for myself helps me have the motivation to hold myself accountable to work even when I may want to go outside and ride my bike.
There is just so much to be grateful for! What things about your work are you grateful for? Answer below in the comments.
You might also enjoy the power of gratitude and daily gratitude.
