It is relatively easy to get people fired up about being happy at work. At least initially… that’s what we are finding in our research. So how do you sustain positivity?
Here is one way that I have found is extremely effective:
Step 1: Find a routine that many people engage in at work each day. This could be a daily huddle meeting like the people at Nationwide Brokerage Solutions do. This routine involves many individual practices including: projecting the day’s work activities, reviewing the previous day’s business, and assessing wins and losses.
Step 2: Once you have identified such a routine, then add one extra step or practice to the routine that is designed to do nothing more than raise positive emotions. These could include loyalty, pride, a sense of accomplishment, and hopefulness.
At Nationwide, they chose to infuse a practice that elicits care for one another. They put a mood barometer in the huddle board meeting area. Before the meeting starts, everybody puts their picture magnet over the description that best describes their mood that day. People who are feeling good are celebrated and people who aren’t are shown passion and concern—with offers of assistance and support that carry on throughout the day.
The net effect is that these huddle board meetings—which could simply be another boring meeting about all the things they have to do—have become a favorite part of the day for the entire team.
Find a routine and add a positive practice to change the nature of work.
(See “Why Can’t We All Be Happy at Work?” for more happiness research, case studies, and best practices.)
