Enjoying What You Do
by Steve Goodier
Plato said that work should be play. Some airline employees have taken his
injunction seriously. After landing, one flight attendant announced,
"Thank you for flying Delta Business Express. We hope you enjoyed giving
us the business as much as we enjoyed taking you for a ride."
As a plane touched down and was slowing to a stop at Washington National, a lone
voice came over the loudspeaker: "Whoa, big fella. WHOA!"
One pilot made this weather announcement: "Weather at our destination is 50
degrees with some broken clouds, but they'll try to have them fixed before we
arrive."
"As you exit the plane," a flight attendant said, "please make sure to gather
all of your belongings. Anything left behind will be distributed evenly
among the flight attendants. Please do not leave children or spouses."
And passengers heard this just as they were to exit the aircraft: "Last one off
the plane must clean it."
To enjoy your work more, it helps to put some play in what you do. But what if
you don't like your work? Can you find something to do you enjoy?
Authors Doug Hall and David Wecker tell the story of Ken Davis, a man who found
a simple way to enjoy his work (MAKING THE COURAGE CONNECTION; Fireside Books,
1997). Ken just couldn't find his occupational niche. He worked at a
variety of jobs and disliked them all. While Ken was working as a door
salesman, he noticed that at least half of his customers had malfunctioning
doorbells. And suddenly, Ken's life career became clear. He opened
his own doorbell repair service.
Ken's wife laughed when she first heard his idea. When she realized he was
serious, she cried. Whoever heard of making a living repairing doorbells?
But Ken is making a comfortable living at his unique job, and he's happier than
he's ever been. Ken didn't enjoy what he was doing, so he is now doing
what he enjoys.
"The biggest mistake that you can make is to believe that you are working for
somebody else," Earl Nightingale asserts. "Job security is gone. The driving
force of a career must come from the individual. Remember, jobs are owned by the
company; you own your career!"
No matter where you work, you work for yourself! With a little creativity and
imagination, your work can seem less like drudgery and more like play. And
wouldn't you really rather have it that way?
Steve Goodier
Publisher@LifeSupportSystem.com is a professional speaker, consultant and
author of numerous books. Visit his site for more information, or to sign up for
his FREE newsletter of Life, Love and Laughter at
http://LifeSupportSystem.com.