The Future of Happiness at work
Times change, the robots are coming. The world of work has changed, jobs are coming and jobs are going. What will your job mean when there is a machine next to you that seems to do everything? What does it mean to be an employee and how do you find your happiness in this?
The Employees of later
The employees of the future are not the same as now. We have learned to specialise in a field, while the future requires us to diversify our knowledge and deploy it in multiple industries. This is already happening right now, think of the technical knowledge we need to have today. Every profession is affected to some extent. The Greek word 'Polymath' means 'someone who has learned in several areas'. It seems we need to be at home in multiple markets. In fact, 75% of all children will practice professions we don't know yet. But how do we get work satisfaction out of something we don't know anything about yet?
2 studies into (work) happiness
The PERK model
Several studies have been carried out into happiness at work, including the PERK model. PERK stands for
Purpose, Engagement, Resilience and Kindness.
- Purpose: stands for doing something you believe in
- Engagement: is about pleasure and autonomy in your work
- Resilience: focuses on your resilience
- Kindness: contact with your colleagues
What is striking about this model is that there is something for everyone in each pillar that they can apply in their work. And that is regardless of the working environment or industry. You are in charge of these factors yourself.
The longest study of happiness at work
When people are asked about their life purpose, the answer with 80% is getting rich. 50% answered with a desire to be famous. This is especially true for the younger guard. But what really matters in life and where do you get the most happiness out of it? The Harvard Study about Adult Development is the longest study on happiness in history. 724 men were followed for 75 years. The study found that people lived the longest and were happy when they:
- Have close ties with family and friends
- Commit to society
The main lessons were:
- Work is not about making as much money as possible and working as hard as possible
- Good relationships keep us healthier and happier
- It's not the number of friends, but the quality of friendship matters most
We often forget how important the above lessons are. It takes time and effort to build good relationships and it may also be exciting to be completely autonomous in how you handle your work. In practice it is important to think about these things, but also to reflect on how you feel about your work. Do you and your colleagues fit together well? How is your relationship with your colleagues? To find happiness in the future, social contacts are becoming increasingly essential, including virtual ones. To learn from each other, to stimulate each other, to work together, and to simply have fun.
Real and your happiness at work
JP Gray specialszes in recruiting and selecting professionals in both a permanent and interim basis. We want to get to know you well, so that we can find a job for you that not only suits your abilities, but also suits you as a person and your situation. A step to another industry can be very interesting if you are there and that contributes to your happiness at work. Are you curious about what we can do for you? Please contact us or take a look at our current vacancies.