I have a thought experiment for you to try.
Go back in your mind to the best job you’ve ever had or the best time at a job you’ve ever had. This isn’t just when the work was the most fun and easy, but when it was the most rewarding. What made it stand out? Maybe the team you worked with exceptionally talented and/or worked well together, and you accomplished some great things even though the work was hard.
I discovered my best work memory recently as I was assembling my portfolio for a UX writing position. The portfolio assignment was straightforward: Present my best work and write an accompanying report on the problem it solved, how well it worked, what my role was, and what impact I personally had on the project.
I was browsing the Internet Archive for some websites I’d designed and found one that struck me. When I saw it, I was immediately filled with joy as positive memories came flooding back. One reason it gave me such joy was because, at the time, I had been given nearly 100% flexibility over the design of a homepage and it turned out to be some of my best work.
A little background
When I designed the homepage, I was given the task of prioritizing local news stories (our main strength) and was able to design the page for maximum usability, from layout to fonts, images, and story selection. I was also able to offer some new, interactive features I had discovered, and other features I coded myself — all with the goal of the site being the must-visit destination for news because of the content and because it had the best user experience. I believe my team and I nailed it.
Without this experience and others like it that kept the fire of creativity and curiosity burning burning inside me, I wouldn’t have been there long.
What makes work seem like a grind?
There are myriad reasons — some within our control and others without — why some jobs stink. But as I was thinking about what made this experience stand out, I learned from job coaching experts that there are a few questions that, when answered, can put you on the right track to finding the job that’s right for you.
Here they are:
- What you do best? Forget everything else…salary, prestige, notoriety, work location…and focus on your #1 strength. What is it? What would a trusted colleague say is your super power? What would a family member say?
- What do you enjoy doing the most? And alternatively, what do you like doing least and want to avoid doing? There are no wrong answers to this question. If you don’t like speaking in front of others or managing projects, don’t sweat it or think yourself less than some who does. Hate working with kids and animals? Live your truth and put it on a T-shirt, make it a bumper sticker and then, most importantly, stick to your standards.
- What are your priorities? These are factors that affect your decision to hit send on that resume or grit your teeth and create another Workday account (if you know, you know). These could be pay, location, work-life balance, pizza parties, benefits, or time off. What do you value?
The perfect job, as you can imagine, is where your answers intersect and checks most, if not all of the boxes. Maybe you’ve already found it. If so, congratulations! Or maybe you’re still on a quest to find it. Maybe the conditions or situation that made your top job or top experience what it was are hard, if not impossible to reproduce.
Don’t give up hope that there will be more rewarding work opportunities out there for you. Who knows, your next perfect job could be right around the corner.
Go get it!
