Even if you’re a positive person, work can throw you some curveballs that destroy your cheery attitude and your productivity.
Everything from bad leadership to horrible workloads can throw off your mojo and interfere with your winning attitude that got you there in the first place. So, how do you stay productive, creative and – most importantly – happy, despite all this?
Thankfully plenty of successful people have been in your shoes (or flats) and gotten through it with some proven ways to keep a positive attitude at work. Try these habits, and you’ll always have a smile on your face:
1. Think you’re unstoppable.
In the early 20th century, the typical American woman didn’t wear makeup, but that didn’t stop Elizabeth Arden. By sticking with her dream of bringing makeup from the stage into daily life, she built a worldwide empire. While others thought she was crazy, she relied on this unstoppable mentality to rake in the dollars.
When you view yourself as unstoppable and everything as possible, you can stay motivated and keep a positive attitude at work through both the ups and downs.
You’ll be amazed at the doors that open up when you start believing that you can accomplish anything.
2. Smile
Smiling does more than make you look happy. It tricks your body into thinking you’re happy, and releases a flood of feel-good neurochemicals into your body in the process.
Faking it ’til you make it has other benefits as well. Think about walking into an office full of angry people. Did it bring you down a little?
If you answered “yes,” it’s because visible moods are contagious, including smiling. So no matter how bad a morning you’re having, try to walk into the office smiling. The whole office will smile along with you.
3. Pay it forward
President Obama said that “if you go out and make some good things happen, you will fill the world with hope, you will fill yourself with hope.”
That’s more than just a pretty speech. Multiple scientific studies have shown that paying it forward not only makes others feel better, but creates long-lasting feelings of joy within yourself, and it’s one of the surefire ways to stay positive at work.
Bring some donuts into work. Offer people coffee. Offer to help with a project. Do what you can to get the whole team beaming, and they’ll do the same for you.
4. Take a breather
During a hectic day, taking a break is usually the last thing on our minds. But even the US Women’s Soccer team needs some bench time every once and a while, and so do you.
According to Sharon Salzberg, the author of Real Happiness at Work, “without some breathing space in the face of constant demands, we won’t be creative, competent, or cheerful.”
The little time taken off from work is well worth the investment. Put everything down for a few minutes and take a walk, read your favorite book–whatever it takes to get your mind off work for a few minutes. We promise, whatever you were working on before your little breather will still be there when you get back – and you might even have your next big idea when you return.
5. Build positive relationships with your co-workers
You don’t have to (any probably shouldn’t) know every aspect of your co-workers’ dating lives, but forging a stronger relationship can create that much needed support group when your positivity wanes. Even inviting your co-workers out to lunch can lift your spirits.
Even better, getting a mentor is one of the ways to keep a positive attitude at work, since they’ve been in the same shoes and gotten through it. More importantly, they can nip the issue in the bud by helping you find your true calling at work.
6. Keep learning
Sometimes, when you’re doing the same tasks ad nausea at work, keeping a happy attitude can get difficult. But just because you have the same task list, it doesn’t mean there aren’t learning opportunities and ways to challenge yourself. Mega-moguls know one of the best ways to stay positive at work is to be a constant learner. Something as simple as volunteering for a new project can refresh and boost your career.
Share you ways to have a positive attitude at work
Do you have any tips? The LTH Tribe wants to hear from you!
