If you are unhappy at work here a five specific changes you can make to the way you respond (note well: ‘respond’ not ‘react’) to the world around you.
1 Become politely rebellious. Don’t be troublesome and constantly disruptive but don’t be afraid to inject your thoughts with a few ‘What if we ....?’ ‘Why don’t we ....?’ Make sure you contribute your ideas!
2 Become relentlessly positive. Look for the good and praise it, but if you have to challenge someone’s mistake do it privately and remember the difference between offering a critique and voicing a criticism.
3 Become prudently self critical. Keep a watchful eye on your own behaviour, the path you tread and the results you generate and if you are wrong or make a mistake don’t be afraid to admit it.
4 Become persistently interactive. Don’t waffle and try to socialise ad nauseam and avoid monopolising conversations, but do build professional relationships with colleagues and peers whenever circumstances allow.
5 Become genuinely optimistic. Don’t expect things to go wrong, but make sure you are prepared when they do. Put plans in place against the day when your world goes pear shaped: redundancies and takeovers do happen!
