Happy workplaces II

Several weeks back, we asked you whether your workplace was a happy one. While most said yes, many of you suggested it could be better.

My parents always said that if you feel good, the people around you will, also. Can that translate into a happier workplace, and how?

Socialization is number one -- the more common activities you share, the better people tend to feel. Celebrating birthdays and other personal or professional milestone events is not a new concept, but it's one of those small things that makes a difference. Form a committee, help organize other group activities, start up a new (or work on an existing) internal newsletter -- department, division or company. Suggest and solicit other team-building ideas -- everybody has at least one.

But "what about me?" you say (it always comes back to you, doesn't it). Lots of possibilities here. First, can you do anything about your schedule -- start work earlier or later to avoid commuting hassles? Is telecommuting on a regular or semi-regular basis a possibility for you?

Speaking of commuting, can you walk at least part of the way to work -- possibly from a train station that's not as close to your workplace? You'll get some fresh air and exercise, feel better, and maybe you and a few colleagues could walk together -- which will be something else to share.

What do you do to make your workplace a happier place?

Stifling jobs in a scary economy?

When you think about your career, your job, and job security, does the word victim come to mind? Is every day a bad day at the office?

Interesting. Because you're certainly not alone. A recent Experience poll suggested that more than 70 percent of young professionals (that would be you) have failed to hit the career goals they had when they graduated.


And yes, some of you blame your bosses, and some of you blame your companies, and some are just plain burnt out.

On this blog, we recently heard comments about the way some companies treat employees. One suggested that for all the appreciation he sees at work, he might as well be working as a contractor (preferably for a staffing firm that offers benefits).

This is a problem for you, the employee, and an even greater problem for them (the employers). According to one research report, turnover can cost a company nearly three times an employee's salary to replace them, including recruitment, training, severance, and lost productivity. And companies are finally starting to recognize this, and pay attention. In many cases, they're listening to the clear messages that employees are sending, and responding positively to them.

What's it like at your company? Is the economy so scary that you're trying to hold on, or are you right on the edge? Do you and your colleagues talk about this much? And is your company hearing what you're saying?

Last Lecture at our office

At our office, departmental meetings can be strange, varied -- and sometimes wonderful -- things. We've had how-to demonstrations of improvements to the our email newsletter tool, and we've talked through all kinds of organizational issues. Today, we listened to a dying man.

Many of us had already heard of Randy Pausch, the Carnegie Mellon professor who delivered the traditional Last Lecture with a non-traditional twist -- he wasn't retiring, he was dying of pancreatic cancer.



It's rolled across the Web, Oprah and other network TV shows have had emotional features on this lecture, but you should listen to the real thing, (and preferably listen to the whole thing -- it's about an hour and a quarter long) for yourself. Our little band had a lot of teary eyes by the end -- not because it was sad, but because it was grand. We tried to talk about what we each got out of it, but for a pretty talkative group, we couldn't get much of a conversation going at all.

So we all took away something (I particularly was moved by the messages of the brick walls, but you need to find your own takeaway). It wasn't a classic, by-the-book organizational meeting, although it was all about work, and was all about organizations, but sometimes it's better to learn things in that different way.

Do your departmental meetings ever move you to this "good kind" of tears? Is it appropriate for a workplace? What do you think?

Blame it on your parents

Before I went to college I thought that most people found a job they loved and worked there until retirement. That's what my parents are doing. My mom has been at her job for 28 years, and my dad is approaching his 27th anniversary. I quickly discovered that I cannot base my career perceptions on my parents' example.

According to a New York Times article, most of Gen Y has yet to make that discovery.

As college seniors are embarking on their first job search, which attitudes of work will they take with them? The one dealing with passion and satisfaction or the one dealing with grueling and taxing work?

Daniel Pink, author of "The Adventures of Johnny Bunko" who specializes in navigating the workplace, explains how parents influence Gen Y's perceptions of a career.

"They've [Gen Y] been told it's all about them - what they want, what they are passionate about, what they find fulfilling. That's not a bad message, but it's also not a complete message."

What do you think? Were you influenced by the messages your parents gave you about their careers/work?