5 Tips for improving your work ethic We’ve all been there. That feeling of really, really not wanting to go into the office of a morning. It cripples productivity, raises stress levels, and makes us unhappy within ourselves and the people, we work with
So Why do we do it The feeling of not wanting to go to work is often the result of a poor work ethic. If you’ve experienced it now or in the past, that doesn’t make you a bad person or poor employee – a poor work ethic usually arrives subconsciously and is something you’ll have little control over or forewarning of its impending arrival.
Thankfully, there are some simple tips and methods you can employ right now to improve your work ethic fast, and they’re not quite as tricky as you might think.
To help you get out of that rut and back, fighting fit for a productive time in the office, we’ve decided to list our top tips for improving your work ethic starting today.
1. Look at your body – and treat it right A healthy body, produces a healthy mind that will help you build a better approach to work because the two are intrinsically linked.
If you feel lazy in the morning, the last thing you’re going to want to do is to spring out of bed and head to the office. You’re far more likely to lay in and hit the ‘snooze’ button and curse the fact you even have a job in the first place.
Lethargy can be a result of not enough sleep and poor levels of exercise, therefore if the feeling just described is something you’re all too familiar with, it’s time to go on something of a permanent health kick, start off with a simple walk, better-eating habits.
Start to walk instead of taking a lazy drive down to the corner shop, walk when you’d normally take the car, and swap those regular junk treats for fruit and glasses of water – you’ll be surprised how much more up for it you’ll feel each morning.
2. Chuck the poor distractions How many times do you check your email each day? What about social media? Is your Facebook feed something you access every five minutes to check in on what your friends and family are up to?
We live in a world full of distractions. Junk TV, junk news, junk newspapers, multiple forms of content, relentless notifications and devices capable of connecting us immediately to the Internet are everywhere and it seems impossible to drag yourself away from, it becomes an addiction you don’t really need, get rid of it or at least cut-down.
Check your email only two or three times a day, turn off notifications and leave social media for the moments when you’re sat on the sofa with nothing better to do.
3. Be dependable If you promise to complete a task or project – do so. Get it done on time (or before, if possible), and pat yourself on the back, get yourself a small reward, and if you feel things are slipping, be honest with those for whom you promised completion date.
Being dependable at work will earn you respect and increase your levels of satisfaction considerably. If people know they can rely on you to get the job done, you’ll be rewarded with their gratitude, and there are few things that can push you on to achieve more than a heartfelt “thank you”.
4. Your timeclock, your flexible day Working a strict nine-to-five isn’t for everyone, the working world has changed and so has the usual stiff 9-5, if you find yourself regularly flagging at 3 PM, or uninspired until mid-morning, you’ll probably benefit from working a more flexible day, only you will know what hours suit you.
This, of course, depends on whether or not your employer will allow flexible working, but if they do (or if you’re the boss), being a little more dynamic with the hours you work will help you raise productivity levels and increase your desire to get the job done.
The ongoing advances in web-based technology have made this form of working easier and more possible than ever before with the ability to work when you feel most inspired and stop when you can’t see the wood for the trees is liberating.
5. Don’t let mistakes ruin your progress You’ll slip up – probably daily. We all do. However, the people with the best work ethics are capable of picking themselves up swiftly after their mistakes, learning from them, and moving on.
Don’t beat yourself up, If you allow mistakes to ruin your progress at work by occupying every thought, your desire to get the job done will quickly evaporate, your day will just get worse
Great things will happen if you embrace failure.we learn from it, and move on, no one has ever achieved greatness without slipping up at multiple stages along the way, and you’re no different.
We’re imperfect, but that’s what makes us brilliant, we learn and grow, that’s development.
Wrapping things up Unless you’re particularly spritely in the morning, like most people, it’s unlikely that you’ll literally jump out of bed and head to work full of an endless supply of energy, but if you follow our tips above, you’ll greatly increase your ability to foster a healthy approach to work and become a better worker all round
Whenever you feel uninspired by your role, but you know it’s something more superficial than job dissatisfaction, check that you’re doing all you can to improve your work ethic. As we’ve demonstrated today, it really isn’t that difficult at all.
