Why Can’t We Describe Our Own Perfect Work Day?

What are the parts of your work you enjoy and what parts do … not enjoy.

I was recently thinking about this so I could hand off some of my least desirable tasks, and was curious how my preferences lined up with others. So, I began searching for examples of other people’s perfect work day.

What I found is that a lot of people don’t know how to describe their perfect work day and were also looking for help. When these same people come up against the question in a job interview, they are stumped.

As an entrepreneur who (often) structures my day how I want, I found this fascinating, but it also helped to explain the experiences of many people I’ve worked with over the years who are miserable, because they loathe their jobs.

Have you ever taken the time to really consider what your perfect work day would look like? 

Most people are so focused on getting through their day-to-day tasks that they never stop to think about what they really want to get out of work. However, understanding what your perfect work day looks like is essential to creating a fulfilling and satisfying career, or setting a direction for where you want to go.

If you don’t know what your ideal work day looks like, how can you work towards achieving it? Once you know, you can start to create a plan to make it a reality. 

Here are five key steps to help you get started:

1. Reflect on your past experiences

Think back to a time when you were truly happy and fulfilled at work. Or, what’s the best job you ever had? What were you doing? Who were you working with? What was the environment like? By reflecting on past experiences, you can start to identify what elements of work make you truly happy and fulfilled.

1. Identify your strengths and passions

What are you passionate about? What are you good at? By identifying your strengths and passions, you can start to identify careers, or roles within your current work, that use them. Aligning with your strengths and passions means that you will be more likely to enjoy your work and feel fulfilled.

1. Consider your work style and preferences

Do you work best in a collaborative environment or do you prefer to work independently? Do you like to have a structured schedule or do you prefer flexibility? Understanding your work style and preferences can help you identify the types of work environments that are most conducive to your success and happiness. I personally like both structure and flexibility, but I like to have control over what that looks like.

1. Envision your perfect work day

Close your eyes and imagine your perfect work day. What does it look like? Who are you working with? What are you working on? What does the environment feel like? Can you achieve that where you are working now? Envisioning your perfect work day can help you create a clear vision of what you want out of your work experience. Maybe you are at the end of your career and looking forward to retirement, or, maybe you you can’t imagine another 20 years in a place where you can’t imagine enjoying your day.

1. Create a plan to make it happen

Once you have a clear understanding of what your perfect work day looks like, it’s time to create a plan to make it happen. It might not come overnight, and may involve ramping up your education or training, seeking out new job opportunities, or starting your own business. Whatever your path, having a clear vision of what you want out of your work experience can help guide your decisions and actions.

Most of us don’t really think about this, but taking the time to consider what your perfect work day looks like is essential.  By reflecting on past experiences, identifying your strengths and passions, considering your work style and preferences, envisioning your perfect work day, and creating a plan to make it happen, you can start working towards the career and work experience that brings you the most joy and fulfilment.