We’ve all been there. Sitting in your car in the work parking lot, dreading going in. Counting down the minutes until you can leave. Daydreaming about walking out and never coming back.
Only 30% of American workers are engaged with their job. That means 70% are just not that into it. This is a staggering number.
Bad work situations are soul-sucking and can ruin pretty much every aspect of your life. If you have the ability to leave the job, that’s the obvious answer, but that’s not always an option.
If going on the job market isn’t an option for you right now, there are some things you can do to make a bad work environment more bearable. Keep reading to learn how.
1. Decide How Long You’ll Stay
Maybe you can’t leave yet, but you don’t have to stay forever in a terrible job. Decide how long you will stay, whether that’s 6 months, a year, 18 months, whatever. Decide how long and write it down.
Do whatever it takes to make sure you meet your goals to get out of the job in the time frame you’ve identified. Knowing that you only have to do it for a defined amount of time will help you get through the day-to-day.
2. Enjoy Life Outside of Work
Leave work at work. Enjoy time with family and friends, participate in hobbies or pick one up, exercise, do whatever it is that makes you happy outside of work. Don’t let a bad work situation cast a shadow on everything in your life.
It’s easy to let that happen, but making a cognizant effort to not let work bleed into your personal life will be better for you and those around you.
3. Look For Ways to Improve Things
What is it about your job that is so bad? Is the leadership poor? Is there little to no room for advancement? Perhaps the benefits are subpar or nonexistent. Take stock of what is bad and think about ways to improve.
Maybe small changes in benefits could help, such as offering worker’s compensation insurance or wellness plans. Learn more about Florida workers compensation requirements to see if that’s an option for your company.
Use what power you have to make things better for you and everyone else.
4. Bring Positive Energy to Your Workplace
Commit to keeping your complaints about work out of the workplace. Don’t spend your lunch or breaks whining or commiserating with your co-workers. That does nothing but spread the negativity and creates an even more negative environment in the long-run.
Do what you can to be a better boss, a better co-worker and a better employee.
5. Stand Up For Yourself
A lot of the negative feelings people have about work stem from being pushed around or not treated with respect from their coworkers or supervisors. If this is the case, stand up for yourself!
If you are overburdened, talk to your boss. Perhaps they don’t realize everything you are doing. Communication is key to making any sort of improvements in your situation.
Final Thoughts on Improving a Bad Work Situation
Rest assured that you’re not the first person to be in a bad work situation and you won’t be the last. While that might do little to make you feel better now, in the long run, the situation might actually teach you something.
For even more about work and making sure you find a good work-life balance, check out more of our blog posts.
