It’s pretty easy to guess why 40% of employees are not engaged at work. And in your own life, you’re either in the same boat or have heard the gripes, quips and complaints from others. But what about the 60% of employees that are engaged? What is it that they love about their jobs and how can you love yours, too?
That’s exactly the question asked by TINYpulse, a company providing weekly employee surveys to over 40,000 people at 300 companies located across the globe. As an advisor to the company, I was able to get a sneak peek into some of the findings TINYpulse will be publishing on employee engagement for 2013.
To reach their findings, the company surveyed their clients’ employees, asking a relatively simple open-ended question: "What do you love about your job?" TINYpulse then tabulated and analyzed the results, identifying these top five reasons people love their jobs.
The number one reason cited for loving a job was coworkers. because of the people they work with. In fact, this answer was given 3x more often than the next most-cited reason.
One responder commented, "I love the people I work beside. They are practically my family."
"Great people attract great people," said TINYpulse founder and CEO David Niu. "The quality of your team can play a big role in employee happiness."
Pro-tip: If you’re looking for a job you’ll love, don’t get distracted by the perks. Instead, look for the people you want to work with. Don’t be intimidated by long interviews with multiple people. This type of interview set up gives you a good chance to meet more of the team and help you to evaluate if the role, among the already existing team members, will be a good fit..
The second leading factor in what makes people love their jobs comes under the banner of freedom. Employees cited freedom, autonomy and flexibility as key components to job satisfaction.
One employee craved "having the freedom to create, improvise and be entrepreneurial," while another stated: "I love having the freedom to experiment and fail, and still support my actions."
"If you want your employees to take risks, you have to give them permission to fail ," said Niu.
Avani Pakti, who leads the health and happiness team at the global consulting firm Zevenseas agrees, also adding that freedom of expression is just as important.
"You have to proactively ask employees for their opinion on a regular basis, and allow people to speak their mind without fear."
Pro-tip: Freedom and autonomy can provide ideal working conditions, but in many cases, that responsibility has to be earned. Check out these quick tips for approaching your boss or manager with a proposal for more flexibility, if you currently have very little.
Cameron Herold, author of Backpocket COO, said culture is king and creating a desirable work environment is the most important advice he gives to CEO’s for growing a business.
Employees also rate culture highly, listing the work environment as the third most important factor for loving your job. One respondent gushed: "There are many things that I love about my job. I love the work environment. I love the camaraderie that is formed with co-workers. I love being a part of something larger that makes a difference. I love that everyone cares and that you have flexibility when needed."
And when it comes to an engaging work culture, leadership and management are who employees look to in setting the status quo.
"Many people think of work culture in terms of ping-pong tables and free snacks," said Niu. "However, I’ve found that companies who rank high on our employee happiness index have cultures that deliver on the fundamental values of transparency, trust and communication ."
The converse of this is also true and the terms "toxic," "dysfunctional" and "disengaged" came up a lot where employee ratings are low.
Pro-tip: Look for work environments where there is a strong alignment with your personal values. Ask these 4 questions to determine company culture in an interview or if you are at a company, look at the traits and characteristics of people who were recently promoted or have risen through the ranks.
Many respondents of the TINYpulse survey listed "variety" and "learning" as things they loved about their job. According to Duke professor Tom Katsoulea, "even lowly amoebas show evidence that boredom and unhappiness occur when subjected to repeated stimuli without new 'learning.'"
Thus, it’s in our nature to learn and seek variety. One employee said, "I love the variety. Everyday is different and I get to interact with such a varied group. It means I am always learning."
It’s also very important to provide employees with the resources, tools and training for their development. "One of our clients really engaged their employees by creating and communicating career path road maps for all of their employees," said Niu.
Pro-tip: Variety and learning are two-sides of the same coin. Learning new skills allows you to tackle more opportunities and variety provides the stimuli forcing you to learn. If you aren't currently in a position with variety, take up free online classes like learning how to code to help you pivot in a career that more aligns with your interests.
Somewhere in a company lunchroom there is a poster with rock climbers making the final ascent up a mountain. The caption reads: "Do not limit your challenges, challenge your limits."
It’s trite, but true. People want to be challenged.
"I love that my job challenges me every day in different ways," said one respondent. Another employee wrote, "Give me MCP: mission, challenge and purpose."
In contrast, low employee engagement scores were given when words like "grind," "repetitive," "mundane" and "unchallenged" were reported.
"Leaders who are great at delegating provide both opportunity and challenges for their employees to stay engaged," said Niu. "The key is to unblock, support and provide the resources for employees to push their limits."
Pro-tip: You don’t have to think of challenges in terms of big moves and jumping off cliffs. Learn to take smaller steps quicker to get out of your comfort zone. If you want to be a better speaker, practice in a smaller meeting then in front of an audience of thousands, for instance. Then make a TEDTalk an eventual goal.
If you are looking for a job you love where you are engaged and challenged, you need to look further than compensation. For employers, get employee feedback on a regular basis. Then, listen and act.
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