Mine your job for moments that matter

22 June 2017

Everyone has times when things in their career just don't seem to add up and make sense.  Times when you pause and look at what you do day in day out and ask questions such as: “Is this all there is?”

If this feeling goes on for too long you can start to feel stuck, unmotivated, resigned and helpless.  Responsibilities surround you, you can get caught in a myth of what you think you are supposed to do and can feel you are just one of the unlucky ones who ended up in a boring career.

This is never the case and there are always many things to do to step out, step around and reexamine this situation.  The Mining for Moments that Matter exercise is one I would encourage you to do if it feels like your career has hit one one these tricky times. 

Mining for Moments that Matter

Most days in your job, moments will occur when you feel good about what you are doing – it’s fun, you are energised and engaged, and most of us would like these moments to last longer and happen more often.  Dismal moments also occur, when what you are doing does not feel good at all – moments of drudgery, dismay, disinterest, and even despair.

For most of us we get to the end of the day and sum it up as either a good day or a bad day, without taking the time to examine what moments made it good or what moments made it bad.  Rarely is a day wholly good or wholly bad, and this summing up is problematic when you are feeling stuck.

The Mining for Moments that Matter exercise asks you to take time at the end of each day to record the high moments and the low moments in more detail.  In recording and reflecting on these moments you can get a clearer perspective of the elements you might want to build into your future career and those you do not. 

If you would like to do this exercise there are 3 steps. 

Step 1

Start by taking time at the end of each day to briefly list at least 6 moments that occurred that day.  Be balanced with the moments you record noticing both good, bad and neutral moments.  (Hint: to overcome our natural human negativity biases intentionally look for good moments first.)

Get down into the moment rather than the general – for example record “Editing the paragraph in the report to have a more positive tone”, rather than “Provide feedback on report.”  The more nuanced and detailed about the moment you get the more valuable this exercise will be.

Step 2
Now give your moment a score out of 10 for each of the following:

·      How absorbed you were in the moment

·      How enjoyable the moment was

·      How skillful you were in the moment

·      How challenged you were in the moment

(Email me if you would like a PDF worksheet to do this on)

Do this every day for 2 weeks without too much mulling or reflection.  Save any assessment of what you are recording until the end of the 2 weeks when you have some real data to look at. 

Step 3
Finally, when you have finished the exercise examine and reflect on it.  Mine the moments for the information that matters.

At the end of the two weeks you will have a lot of data.  It is up to you to interpret what it is telling you by looking at the interplay of the elements.  For example, are there tasks you are so skillful at doing they no longer give you good challenge?  Are the times you are absorbed by activities happening in a certain environment, with certain people, or at a particular time of the day/week?  Do the moments of high enjoyment come before or after doing some other activity?  Play with the data, look for the patterns.

Then armed with your data first look for some small adjustments you can make to your current work.  What small things could you do to increase levels to which you are absorbed by, enjoy, are skillful at, and challenged in your role?  This is called Job Crafting.  Notice the difference any changes you make have on how you feel about your work.

The data may also start to point you in the direction of bigger changes.  I would encourage you to make the small changes first so you feel stronger and more secure about your current circumstances before making the bigger decisions.  We always make better long term decisions when we feel good.

Aside: For those of you who have followed my writing for a while you will know that I recommend doing ongoing career maintenance every 6 months.  Mining for Moments that Matter is an exercise you may find valuable to weave into your 6-monthly career maintenance checkup – it fits in the Know Yourself section.

As always, wishing you a Flourishing Career.

Katherine