What makes people love their jobs?

By Lee and Ken Estridge

As regular readers of “Your Career Advocate” know, I sometimes feature the writing of other people in this space. I thought this article by Lee and Ken Estridge would be an ideal selection, because the topic of “employee engagement” has recently been so popular in the business media. This article will be of benefit to both employees and employers.
– Ford R. Myers

Many people think that work is the opposite of fun. Perhaps this is what gives rise to the “TGIF” mindset. But reflecting on the nature of work and the nature of fun, we may arrive at a different answer. Work doesn’t feel like work when you love what you do, enjoy the people with whom you work and feel appreciated for your contributions. So how can leaders make people love their jobs and feel fully-engaged with their companies?

What makes people love where they work?

Based on our interviews with many employees at companies that have been designated as Best Places to Work, people love where they work when their job possesses the following attributes:

1. You are doing things that you love to do and that you are good at.
2. You are working with people who share your values and with whom you enjoy working.
3. You are part of a high performance team that works well together and wants to win together.
4. You are proud of the company you work for because you are aligned with your company’s mission, vision and values.
5. You are working for a boss who cares about you and challenges you to be your best; who lets you know how much your efforts and contributions are appreciated; and who provides you with a steady stream of growth-producing feedback on what you are doing well and how you can get better.
6. You have clear goals and metrics, and you know how you are doing.
7. Your incentives are aligned with your goals, and you are appropriately rewarded for a job well done.
8. You are provided with learning and growth opportunities at work that encourage you to keep growing.
9. You see a path forward within your company, and you can look forward to growing your responsibility and compensation over time.
10. You are encouraged to be creative and resourceful, and to offer your suggestions for how your company can improve.

Why does it matter if people love where they work?

When people love their work, they put their full selves and all their creativity into their work. This leads to maximum engagement, high productivity and low turnover! What company wouldn’t want that from all of their employees?

It all starts at the top!

When leaders work on themselves, value their people and care enough about employee engagement to make their company a best place to work, they end up attracting and keeping the best people who enjoy working together to build a great company. They experience high productivity and low turnover. Recruiting becomes easy because people tell their friends what a great place the company is at which to work!

Lee is Principal of Lee Estridge & Associates. She specializes in coaching business, legal, medical and creative professionals to achieve new levels of awareness in their work and personal lives. Ken is Principal of Ken Estridge & Associates. He is an experienced entrepreneur and executive coach who has advised hundreds of CEOs and senior managers to improve leadership effectiveness, accelerate growth and increase productivity. Visit them at http://www.leeestridge.com and http://www.kenestridge.com.