Moment 68 - Do This If You Don’t Like Your Job: Marcus Buckingham

Jul 29, 2022 14m 52s 10 insights
This episode explores the "competence curse" where individuals pursue careers they excel at but dislike. It introduces a practical "Loved It / Loathed It" exercise to identify "red threads" – activities that bring energy and mastery – and offers strategies to reweave one's job or life to incorporate more of these fulfilling moments.
Actionable Insights

1. Prioritize Daily Activities (The What)

Focus on the specific activities you fill your days with (“the what”) over the purpose (“the why”) or people (“the who”) for long-term job satisfaction, as the “what” ultimately trumps the other factors.

2. Conduct a Loved It / Loathed It Audit

Carry a blank pad for a week, drawing a line down the middle with “Loved It” and “Loathed It” columns. Jot down every activity, moment, or context that either lifts you up (a “red thread”) or drains you, to identify patterns of engagement and disengagement.

3. Identify Your Red Threads

Pay attention to activities you instinctively volunteer for, where time flies by, and you feel a sense of mastery or being “up.” These “red threads” are clues to your innate passions and energy sources.

4. Write Personal Love Notes

Complete the sentence “I love it when I…” with a verb describing an action you genuinely enjoy, rather than focusing on external praise or abstract concepts, to articulate what truly energizes you.

5. Weave Red Threads into Your Day

Each morning, instead of just focusing on your to-do list, intentionally identify and weave 3-5 “red threads” into your day. This proactive approach helps you gradually reshape your work to be more fulfilling.

6. Reweave Your Current Job

Instead of immediately quitting, try to “rewire” or “reweave” your existing job by consciously incorporating more of your identified “red threads.” This can involve learning new competencies or taking on different tasks within your role.

7. Expand Search if Work is Loveless

If two consecutive weeks of the “Loved It / Loathed It” audit yield no “red threads” at work, extend the audit to your entire life – hobbies, family, community – to find where your true passions and energy lie.

8. Beware the Competence Curse

Recognize that being highly competent or receiving external validation for a job you dislike can be a “devilish curse,” leading you down a path of dissatisfaction because you’re good at something you hate.

9. Avoid Loveless Work’s Damage

Understand that spending years in a “loveless job” can psychologically damage you and negatively impact your home life, as emptiness from work is often brought back to your family.

10. Teach Self-Awareness Early

Encourage children, even as young as nine, to develop a language around their emotional reactions to activities, helping them identify their “red threads” early and guide their career choices more effectively than external pressures.