Eleven Years of Your Life Will Probably Be Spent at Work
My guess is that most working adults in the United States are familiar with the 40+ hours per week model. Consider how 40+ hours a week can add up to a large portion of your life-- all spent at work. Think about it: Forty hours a week for 50 years can take up 11 whole years of your life. If you're on that trend, then it behooves you to ensure your work is enjoyable at least most of the time. Enjoying your work, then, is vital to experiencing a life full of happiness.
Johnny Bunko Knows; And He Can Help
If your work is not currently enjoyable or perhaps you wish it were more fulfilling, then let Johnny Bunko come to your aid. The Adventures of Johnny Bunko, by Daniel H. Pink, is perhaps that one career guide you should have received after high school graduation, but probably didn't. Now is an excellent time to change that misfortune for yourself-- and maybe for a friend or loved one, too. Pass it on to a friend or relative once you've finished it, or consider buying an extra copy for a friend.
Not Just Another Career Book
The Adventures of Johnny Bunko is an outstanding career guide for two main reasons. First, the book stands out due to its visually appealing nature. Yeah, that's right . . . this career guide is patterned after a Japanese manga. The artwork by Rob Ten Pas ensures that you won't run into a dull moment or experience any dry reading. Second, this book stands out because Daniel H. Pink provides content that equips you with the ability to discover for yourself the sort of work you should pursue. Rather than just shoving you into a job title or career category, you learn how to apply your unique abilities to your current job-- or how to apply yourself in a different work environment and pursue new, more meaningful work.
Why Being Shoved Into A Job Title Simply Doesn't Work
How can a career guide be worthwhile if it never suggests a job title for you? Because-- suggesting a specific career is nearly useless due to the fact that job titles and work environments are not static. So, unless someone can predict both the work environment you'll find yourself in and match that environment to your personality traits, then no one can truly predict the job title that is best for you.
What Makes Johnny's Adventure So Helpful, Then?
Despite never providing any job title suggestions, Pink's work is still invaluable. He introduces six lessons for understanding yourself and the workplace. He revels these six lessons through the story of the young, hapless Johnny Bunko. Once you contemplate the implications of these six lessons and see how they transform Johnny's circumstances, you'll start to understand both yourself and the needs of the workplace. Knowing those two pieces of information will inform you on where to seek better, happier and more meaningful work. And happier, more meaningful work can possibly be found at your current work place! And if you can't find better work where you are, you'll at least know what to look for as you move on to a new work environment.
Not Weaknesses, but Strengths
Among the six lessons that Pink shares, he encourages us to avoid work that requires a constant struggle with our weaknesses; instead, find work or activities that require the use and honing of our strengths. All too often, the notion of honing our strengths is underrated and undervalued when compared with how often we're encouraged to improve upon our weaknesses. This notion is not to suggest we never need improvement on some weaknesses at certain times; however, consistently undervaluing our strengths often has an undesirable result: our best self remains a mystery.
Now it's time to solve that extremely important mystery by reading the other career book you probably should have received at your high school graduation:
Strengths Finder 2.0.
Solve The Mystery
Daniel Pink performs a great service by encouraging readers to emphasize their strengths, but he doesn't have the time to explore the details of how you should discover your strengths for yourself. However, Pink does offer references worth further investigation. If you should follow through with his references, you'll eventually find yourself holding Strengths Finder 2.o in your hands.
How Does Strengths Finder 2.0 Help?
Strengths Finder 2.0 can be a tremendous help because it provides access to an on-line test that identifies your personality strengths for you. After taking the test, you receive a report of your top five personality strengths along with deeper analysis of your results. Then, you can use the analysis and the book to better understand the kinds of activities and work environments which require your strengths-- enabling you to thrive. Pursuing these activities will allow your work to shine and greatly increase the chances of you feeling happier when at work.
Now, Discover Your Strengths
Another book that can help you find happier work is Now, Discover Your Strengths. This book is based on the same research as Strengths Finder 2.0 and is basically an older version of that same text. If you happen to run across Now, Discover Your Strengths instead, you'll be happy to know that the same on-line test is made available in this book as well. The reason both books offer the same test and share similar formats is because they both come from the same research work and are both sponsored by Gallup Press.
Is Discovering My Strengths Overrated?
Focusing on your strengths is extremely important because research shows that your strengths are often intertwined with your sense of internal motivation. By tapping into your internal motivation, you greatly increase your chances of experiencing that deep sense of focus like when you're in the the zone. You know-- that feeling you have when you get lost in the enjoyment of an activity. That experience is also known as flow. Frequently experiencing flow is usually tied to enjoying a happy life. Since 11 years worth of your life will be spent at work, you had better seek a work environment or career that affords you the opportunity to experience flow on a regular basis.
Did You Just Skip to the End Without Reading the Whole Thing?
Happier work will greatly increase your chances for a happier life-- especially since work is where much of your life might be spent. But if you don't know how to go about ensuring better work for yourself, then take the time to learn from The Adventures of Johnny Bunko. After learning those six important lessons from good ol' Bunko, find out what you're really good at with Strengths Finder 2.0; Then seek out work or activities that allow you to utilize your strengths.
You'll be happy you did.
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If you haven't already done so, I invite you to read my main title post in order to better understand the purpose behind this blog. In that post, you'll find links to three TED Talks that could really impact your life in a positive way.
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