Bored at work – Here’s what to do
When I was a kid my parents would often tell me that people who complained about being bored need to find something to do. Being bored was not an option in my house, if you said you were bored a job was found for you. But what do you do when you’re bored at work? Here’s some ideas:
Appreciate your work mates
When was the last time you appreciated your fellow workers? Look around you, you spend more time with these people daily than you do your loved ones. Obviously there will be some people you like more than others but by showing your appreciation of colleagues, particularly if they have done a job well, will go a long way in improving team camaraderie.
Look at your performance
One of the most important things you can do if you are bored at work is to look at yourself. Do you think you are progressing at work, or have you reached a plateau? You can plan your future course of action based on your current job situation. Maybe now is the time to ask for more responsibility if you feel you are doing your current job really well and thereby grow in your career.
Organise your workspace
Do you know that a neat and clean workspace can improve your productivity as well as your overall mood? If your desk is messy and untidy it can have an adverse effect on your productivity. So take a look around and declutter and organise your desk to give it a tidy, professional look where you want to work for hours.
Prioritise your tasks
Do you prioritise your tasks based on their importance and urgency? If not then you should do it asap. You can use your free time to filter your tasks and work on them in that order. Generally tasks should be prioritised as follows 1) urgent and important – do now 2) needs to be done by tomorrow – do next 3) no rush jobs – do when you have free time. If this doesn’t fill your day and you get bored you need to be asking for more work.
Minimise distractions
Where there is work there are distractions and they will kill your productivity. They are in the form of chatty colleagues, coffee machine conversations and frequent meetings. You need to minimise distractions in order to improve your focus and productivity. Make a list of everything that hampers your work and figure out how these can be removed.
Help your work mates
The word collaboration holds utmost importance in the context of teamwork. Spending your free time is not always about using it for yourself i.e.: shopping online. Some of your team mates might be stuck in their work and you could help them out. This idea might appear weird but it will show you in a positive light to the management team and get you a promotion.
Try to improve team collaboration
Are you and your colleagues working independently and not as a team? This can often mean that the work you receive is delayed so why not try to bring all your team members onto the same page through collaborating with the others and encouraging people to work together in order to achieve objectives. Share your expertise if necessary in order that teamwork is achieved.
Get away from your desk
Do you take lunch at your desk? If yes then it’s time to move away because eating at your desk might make you sleepy and feel disconnected from your co-workers. Going out to lunch with your workmates can improve team performance and allow you to take a breather from the workplace. Hopefully when you get back to your desk you will feel really motivated.
Organise something to look forward to
Sometimes jobs can be boring but everyday is less boring if you have something to look forward to. Why not use your hard earned money on a weekend trip or a holiday. This is one of the most productive things you can do if you are bored. It may not actually be the job that is boring you, it may be your life, so do something interesting, have something to look forward to. Something crazy like bungee jumping will liven you up.
Look for another job
It is possible you have reached the end of the line in your current job. You are bored because you no longer enjoy your work and feel stuck in a rut. If boredom is frequent and not occasionally then its time you started to look for your next job, a role maybe that will offer you the type of work and the environment that you need. That said don’t leave your job on a whim, leave if you are seriously bored and have had enough.
So to conclude there is nothing worse than being bored at work but it can be sorted out, you just need to put in a little effort, either that or as a last resort move on to a more challenging role.
Angela Burton