What's the purpose of your work?

Are you energized or exhausted at the end of the day?

OK, yes, it’s been a long hot summer and social distancing has left most of us with a lot of time on our hands!

One of the things that started to drive me crazy while working from home is our dog’s uncanny ability to beg (loudly) to go outside just before or during a Zoom or phone call!

Solution: Open the door to let her out into our fenced yard and leave her to her own devices.

Problem: My husband kept coming out of his home office to find doors wide open, our air conditioner working overtime trying to cool off all of Maryland and assorted flying bugs in the house!

The obvious answer is for the dog to learn to close the door!!

The thing is, she knows that ‘close the door’ means two things:

1) Jump up and push the door

2) A treat will soon follow

Once she mastered step number one, she started running directly to the treat jar and sitting politely waiting for her reward without actually closing the door.

What does this have to do with energy?

Well, it made me start thinking about how many of us are primarily focused on the reward or payoff without thinking about the real purpose of the task and what it means to us and others.

I have come to realize that when I am focused on work that has meaning and purpose and is aligned to my values, the days fly by and I feel ‘lighter’ On the other hand, when I am focused on outcome only (i.e, paycheck) the day drags and the work is heavy.

Don’t get me wrong, I still like that paycheck but I’m resolved to look for ways that the way I earn it supports more than just my physical needs.

When’s the last time you thought about your purpose and what matters most to you?