Love Your Job

AWARDS: Independent Publisher Book Award 2015 (Silver) and National Mature Media Award 2015 (Bronze)

Step-by-step tips for revitalizing your career

Yes, it is possible to have a job you love, and it doesn't require starting from scratch. Love Your Job is a guide to making work fulfilling and fun — again, or even for the first time. Why count down the hours of the day or the days to retirement when you could reinvigorate your workday, transforming the daily doldrums into a daily dose of enjoyable activity? Kerry Hannon, The New York Times columnist and AARP's Jobs Expert, focuses on the little things that can make a big difference in how we feel about work.

Love Your Job is all about the routines, habits, and thought patterns that, over the years, may have turned a dream job into a drudge or, worse, a nightmare. Changing these habits and attitudes is simple, and this book shows you how to identify the little things that make work enjoyable and engaging. Using these simple techniques, you can adopt the attitude that will keep you happy and that might just lead to bigger and better things, no matter what stage of your career you are in. In this book, you will learn to:

• Develop new habits that bring more purpose into every single workday
• Rekindle your hope and motivation by celebrating small successes
• Recognize negative patterns that keep you from enjoying your job
• Craft an entrepreneurial attitude that will get you noticed and enrich your work life

We all deserve to experience happiness and satisfaction every day, at every stage of our careers. Kerry Hannon explains that you don't have to make a huge career transition to love work again. But if you reinvent the way you see work, who knows where your new outlook will lead? Wake up to the countless possibilities that await you with Love Your Job.

Introduction xi

What My Dog Taught Me about Loving My Job xi

Chapter 1 Curing the Workplace Blues 1

Should You Switch Careers? 3

Chin Up! 6

Take It Up a Notch 7

Loving Your Job 8

The “HOVER” Approach 9

Get a Grip 10

How to Use This Book 12

Chapter 2 Creating the Blueprint for Your Dream Job 15

Map Your Future 16

Your Past Isn’t Prologue 16

Nothing Is Forever 18

Look at the Big Picture 19

What Would Make You Love Your Job? 21

What Are Your Work Goals? 23

Adopt New Ways to Envision Your Career 24

Chapter Recap 27

Chapter 3 Do an MRI on Your Work and Your Life 29

Create Your Job “Budget” Sheet 30

What Does Your Work Really Mean To You? 32

Write in Your Journal Every Day for a Week 35

Is Your Pay What’s Really Bothering You? 38

A Can‐Do Philosophy 38

Consider Taking a Self‐Assessment Test 41

Get Ready to Love Your Job 44

Chapter Recap 44

Chapter 4 Refresh Your Attitude: The Keystone to Your Love Your Job Action Plan 47

Attitude Adjustment 48

Create Your Own Purpose 49

Write It Down 50

A Picture Is Worth a Thousand Words 51

Build a Bear 51

Practice HOVERing 52

Mental Games 57

Adjusting Your Attitude 59

What to Do If You’re Bullied at Work 60

Step Right Up and Enroll in My Three‐Step Fitness Program 64

Chapter Recap 71

Chapter 5 Beyond the Job Description 73

Take Time for Renewal 74

Volunteering and Mentoring 77

Adding Value to Your Job 85

Take Control of Your Time 94

Get Involved in “Extracurricular” Activities 96

Chapter Recap 98

Chapter 6 How to Build Flexibility into Your Job 99

Work Flexibility and Happiness 100

A Myriad of Flextime Options 102

How Is Flextime Working? 104

Is Telework for You? 109

The Risks of Working at Home 111

Chapter Recap 119

Chapter 7 How to Upgrade Your Game 121

The Benefits of Learning New Tricks 122

Learning and Healthy Aging 123

Getting Over the Hurdles 128

Chapter Recap 135

Chapter 8 How to Have the “What’s Next?”Talk with Your Boss 137

The Time Is Now 138

Questions to Ask Yourself before the Big Meeting 140

Your Plan-and-Prepare Strategy 142

Carrying Out the “Ask” 146

Chapter Recap 158

Afterword 161

Resources 165

Ideas for Further Reading 165

Helpful Career Happiness Web Sites 169

Acknowledgments 173

About the Author 175

Index 177

"It provides a great deal of actionable steps to take to enjoy work more. There is a good deal of useful data and interesting anecdotes" (The Marketing Society, June 2015)

"Hannon's book is a valuable tool for those who are dissatisfied in their work" (Entrepreneur Middle East, October 2015)

KERRY HANNON (kerryhannon.com) is a nationally recognized authority on ca- reer transitions and retirement, a columnist for The New York Times and PBS Next Avenue, and a contributing writer at Forbes and MONEY. She has spent more than 25 years covering personal finance for leading media companies. She is the author of the bestselling Great Jobs for Everyone 50+ and the award-winning What's Next? Finding Your Passion and Your Dream Job in Your Forties, Fifties, and Beyond.

Praise for Love Your Job: The New Rules for Career Happiness

"Kerry Hannon unlocks the secrets to finding true career happiness in this smart, practical, and entertainingly written guide. Finding passion, value, and genuine satisfaction in the job you do is rare yet eminently desirable—and obtainable—as Hannon shows. Another first-rate effort from one of the top personal finance journalists in the field."
—Diane Harris, Executive Editor of MONEY Magazine/Money.com

"Once again, Kerry Hannon nails it—in a book that's original, smart, and important. This book questions the follow-your-dream mantra so prevalent today and instead provides insightful, practical advice that will work for anyone, whatever the field, whatever the life stage, whatever the circumstances."
—Marci Alboher, VP of Encore.org and author of The Encore Career Handbook: How to Make a Living and a Difference in the Second Half of Life

"The greatest feeling in life is knowing who you are, doing what you love, and living the life you enjoy. Kerry Hannon leads you to that place. Don't miss this book!"
—Richard Leider, international bestselling author of The Power of Purpose, Repacking Your Bags, and Life Reimagined

"Love Your Job is a great addition to the AARP catalog. As people live longer, there's ever more desire to get the most out of the hours we spend at work. This book can help you cure the career blahs, tackle serious burnout, and get your spark back."
—Daniel H. Pink, author of Drive and A Whole New Mind

"I love the job Kerry Hannon did writing this excellent, practical book. As a noted authority on work and careers, she knows exactly what the rest of us need to do to become more fulfilled at our jobs. Take her advice and I'm confident you'll get more out of work and more out of life."
—Richard Eisenberg, Assistant Managing Editor of Nextavenue.org