Reflections About Joy

Today, as I write this entry, millions of families are honoring their mothers through cards, flowers, phone calls, visits and dinners at local restaurants. This annual observance has become a way for us to celebrate the special joy that mothers bring to our families. My weekly phone call with my own mom will take place a bit later today and wishing her a “happy Mother’s Day” is sure to be part of the conversation.

How would you define joy? More specifically can you define joy as expressed in your workplace or modeled by you, as a leader? While I confess no breakthrough revelations about joy in the workplace I can offer a few brief reflections, beginning with something I wrote about in a previous journal entry.

I believe joy is connected to our inner Spirit, or soul if you prefer that term. When I use the word connected, I’m referring to our relationship with the work we do every day; does that labor nourish and fulfill us? Is your work a true calling – a place where you are using your talents in service of others? When I believe that my work is making a difference in the world, I experience joy.

This past week I facilitated a training event for a team of leaders and was overwhelmed with joy as I witnessed them sharing and learning in a way that had eluded them in the past. They inspired me by their willingness to be vulnerable, their desire to learn and their honesty with each other. Abandoning their need for acceptance and status they chose instead to listen, to love and to learn together. Real joy is derived from these interpersonal connections, not the “material stuff” that society pressures us to accumulate in order to be happy.

What would happen in our workplaces if leaders created opportunities for everyone to know joy? Where would we start? What would such a plan look like? I think it begins with identifying the talents of each employee. Then those talents should be leveraged in the workplace so the employee is able to do what they love every day. As their calling and passion are identified and nurtured, joy will be a natural result. A joyful workplace will be more productive, more inviting and less stressful.

Mother’s Day is a wonderful annual occasion to celebrate the joy of family. I hope you won’t allow another year to pass before you invite joy into your life or the lives of others, especially in the workplace.