Top 5 Ways to Stay Motivated When Work Isn't Appreciated

 

Unappreciated work is very painful. Some people are intrinsically motivated and have little difficulty getting ahead with a difficult job without the encouragement of a superior. Regardless of whether they get recognition or not, many people can't stand being belittled when working hard isn't recognized.

 

Do you feel underappreciated at work? If you want to get more of the praise and recognition you deserve, do your best. Maybe you need to feel success, validation, encouragement on a regular basis to keep going. If so, it can be difficult to stay motivated at work when you feel underappreciated.

 

Take for example you take two people and give one of them a bonus. This bonus is used to make you work harder. Which individual do you think would feel more motivated to succeed? Contrary to popular belief, it is not a prize money. In almost every case, people who were verbally told they were rewarded were more motivated.

 

This example speaks of the dangers of having employees who feel underappreciated. The human need for respect, and the power to make people feel valued at work, must be met.

 

The problem is that many employees don't feel valued by their bosses in today's business culture. As a result, motivation and productivity are often lacking. This creates a dangerous cycle in which a lack of appreciation leads to a lack of work and creates friction in the workplace.

 

It's not just a lack of appreciation that impacts results, but actually causes physical harm in the form of stress and anxiety. According to a well-known study, employees who feel unfairly criticized by their boss can get sick. They had a 30% higher rate of coronary disease than those who felt valued.

 

In the workplace itself, researcher Marcial Losada has found that among high-performing teams, the expression of positive feedback outweighs negative feedback. The results show a ratio of 5.6 to 1. In contrast, low-performing teams have a ratio of 0.36 to 1.

 

Next, you should look at the concept of negative bias. This bias, which is intrinsically ingrained in the human brain, says that negative experiences are easier to remember and perceive than positive ones. Negative stimuli cause the brain's alarm bell to issue a notification, whereas positive stimuli only cause temporary gratification.

 

When you combine the need to feel valued with our innate tendency to negative bias, it's easy to see why so many people struggle to be motivated. This is a serious problem that businesses must solve – individually and collectively.

 

According to a Gallup Research Poll of American workers, 65% of people report feeling underappreciated at work. And those feelings lead to negativity, low morale, and decreased productivity.

 

So if you're feeling underappreciated, at least you're not alone. But with that said, here are some practical things you can do to avoid wallowing in despair and stay motivated.

 

We've all had days where it seemed like nothing was going our way. The printer jams right before a big meeting. A client will not call you back. You spilled coffee on your white shirt. Your boss recognizes other people for something you actually do.

 

When you seek small wins, you force your brain to stop automatically focusing on negative stimuli. It fights negative bias and helps you to be more aware of the positive things that are going on.

 

The great thing about being human is that you have the capacity to set your own goals and find joy in achieving them. In fact, you can cultivate self-esteem.

 

Since you don't get much positive feedback from your boss, you may have to set your own goals and track your progress. If that motivation comes from seeing how your work makes a difference, create a visual representation of it.

 

When you do this, you can create internal motivation. Although this cannot completely replace positive encouragement from superiors. This serves as a small consolation to keep you going during difficult times.

 

Sometimes the best source of motivation comes from outside the office. In particular, there's a lot to be gained from exercising in the morning before you go to work. Whether it's a CrossFit session at the nearest gym or jogging around the neighborhood, you need to get some physical activity done. This will help you feel better about who you are, which only strengthens your mental fortitude.

 

If you choose to exercise before work, make sure you keep real progress notes. Ideally, you should keep these logs in your office in a visible place. When you feel lost and lack any motivation, look at the logs and record how well you did in this area. You should be able to transfer some of those positive feelings back to your work for the day.

 

Recognize the Significance of Your Work

Many people feel underappreciated and lack motivation because they fail to see the importance of their work. While it's ultimately up to your boss to convey this significance, you may have to do your own reflection if you don't get any support in this area.

 

At first, you may think certain tasks are useless, but dig deeper. You don't just make sales calls. You make a sales call to sell a product that will provide value to someone else's business. If they buy the product, it will help them grow their business and support their family. It will also increase your company's profits, which will lead to new growth and opportunities for you and your co-workers.

 

See how thinking about something as simple as a sales call can help you fully appreciate the value of your work? This is something quite easy that you can do with almost any task or goal.

 

Sometimes the fact that you feel underappreciated is completely unknown to your boss. They may be so busy that they don't even notice that you feel this way. If you suspect this might be the case, don't be afraid to speak up.

 

You don't want to come across as a crybaby, so be strategic in how you approach conversations. Explain that you sometimes feel like you're not meeting your expectations and discuss some ways you can be motivated to continue to be successful. If nothing else, this lets your boss know where you stand.

 

As you can see, there are many ways to boost motivation, despite the lack of rewards in your current job. The key is to cultivate self-confidence, even when no one else is giving you the boost you crave.

 

It's also important that you do your part in building a workplace culture that values ​​respect. Even if you're not in a managerial or leadership role, you can still do little things that make people feel appreciated.

 

Make it a point to go out of your way to say something nice about one coworker per day. This could be something as simple as saying, “I thought you did a really good job on that presentation. You should be proud.”

 

People like to feel needed. When asking someone for help, make sure you explain that you're specifically looking for them because you know they're good at creative design (or whatever the case may be).

 

If you're working on a large project with a group of people, consider bringing coffee, snacks, or lunch one day. A physical token of gratitude for hard work will lead to an instant boost in motivation.

 

Pay attention to the details. If you ask someone to send you some information about a particular client and they do so as soon as they return to their office, thank them for the prompt response. These little things are rarely noticed by others. By making your co-workers feel appreciated in the little things.