WMS Episode 50 Transcript


00:12
LORI: Hello, I'm Lori Jo Vest, aka Work Mom, and I am so happy to be here today with you. I want to talk about something that's really important to your career success, and what that is is how enthusiasm is a secret weapon. Enthusiasm is something that differentiates the seriously successful from the people who just slog through their days. There's a lot to be said for it. So we're going to dig into a couple things: reasons that you may be losing yours, how to beef it back up, and why it's so important.


00:48
So, do you ever wonder why some people just light up a room? You know, they walk in and everybody perks up, and they talk to everybody, and they greet everybody, and they’ve just got a really great positive energy. And some other people just kind of slither in, or wander in and sit down and don't say anything. That's the difference between having enthusiasm and not having enthusiasm. I'm not talking about cheesy, over-the-top, loud, obnoxious, fake stuff. None of that. I'm talking about genuine interest in other people, genuine commitment to being a positive person in the workspace. Those kinds of things are what are going to help you with enthusiasm.


01:38
We have the ability to bring energy with us into spaces and communication projects, even on the hard days. When you can do that, you will differentiate yourself from the vast majority of people. And the reason is, these days, we're looking at quiet quitting. People are frustrated, prices are high. You know, there's a lot of crazy things happening in the world, and people are just kind of on edge. If you can be the one that's consistently positive and brings that positive energy, it's huge. I mean, it's absolutely amazing, the difference in how people perceive you.


02:21
So a lot of things happened during the pandemic that brought us into a place of lack of communication, low energy. We were on Zoom, we had Zoom fatigue. We were burned out and low energy. And I know myself, I've sat on Zoom calls where you're, you know, not as much recently, but in the last five years, I've sat on Zoom calls where you've got, you know, six people on the call, and five of them are doing this looking at their computer, and you can tell they're working. They're not paying any attention. They have checked out. And when that happens in a meeting or in a workspace, it just drains the energy and the productivity out of the event or the meeting. So if you're in a meeting, don't be that person that's not paying attention. Don't be that person that is, you know, while important things are being discussed, is sending an email to somebody. Multitasking is great, but if you want to build a career multitasking completely just throws your enthusiasm off. You cannot have enthusiasm for something that you're not paying attention to.


03:31
So put a pin in that one and remember that you know, skills matter, but energy and positivity and interest in what's being talked about, or, you know, manage whatever's happening and the people in the room is what's going to make you stand out and also make you more effective.


03:47
What does enthusiasm actually look like? How can you force yourself to be enthusiastic? Well, you might think I'm going to tell you to be loud and make big smiley faces and all that. That's not what I'm going to tell you, because that's not natural for everyone. What's natural for you when you're interested in something or somebody, you might ask good questions, you may show up early and offer to help do something that maybe isn't directly part of your job description. You jump into situations where the group is working together, and you make sure that you contribute, and you follow up with people. When you've had a great meeting and you've got a couple items that you want to make sure people don't forget, you send them a little note that says, "Hey, great meeting. Thanks so much for taking time." And you actually, you know, communicate with them that they are important to you, and that's why you want to make sure nothing gets dropped. So that is a form of enthusiasm.


04:48
I'll talk to you about some interns that we had, and this will give you a really good picture of what to me enthusiasm for your work, for your career, for your success looks like. I'll give you an example of enthusiasm in the form of somebody really early in their career, an intern. I've had two interns. One of them was really good, followed up on things, was very detail-oriented, paid attention to what she was being taught, took notes, sent good emails, all kinds of things, and was very attentive to her career, to growing her career. We had another intern, and that intern was committed to showing up at the meetings, listening quietly, doing her assignments, turning them in when she was asked for them. And as the internship went on, it lasted for 12 weeks. Toward the end of that internship, we weren't even giving that person or that intern any projects, because when they were given back to us, you could tell that they hadn't paid attention. There were misspellings. They were sloppy.


05:59
So you can tell that this intern lost enthusiasm for what they were doing, and that happens if you are, I mean, just sidebar here, if you are doing a job or in a position that you cannot be enthusiastic about, whether it's because you just don't like the job, it just doesn't suit you, or the people you work with are kind of jerks, or maybe your boss is a narcissist. That does happen. You may find yourself in a situation where you can't generate enthusiasm. In that case, turn anything you have and create enthusiasm around a job search and find a place where you can be enthusiastic.


06:40
But in assuming that you have put yourself in a position, you've got a job that you actually like, and you're trying to build a career, that's what we're talking about here. So we're coming off the sidebar, coming back, and we're going to talk about the science of energy. There's something that happens when somebody enters a space with positive high, what they call vibrational energy. It's contagious. We have as human beings what are called mirror neurons. So when we see people, we might mirror how they're feeling, what they're doing. We're biological beings, and we react to each other biologically. And so when someone comes into a room and they've got great energy, and they're happy and they ask questions. That changes the room. It changes how everyone else in the room feels. And that's something to develop in yourself, if you can develop that ability to come into a space, be welcoming, you know, be authentic. Be interested. Pay attention to each individual person in the room. That's enthusiasm. It's not hard to do that. It really isn't. It just takes being consistent and understanding that who you are in an office or work environment is different than who you are at home. 


07:59
At home, when you feel like crap, go ahead, sit on the couch with a blanket, eat ice cream and, you know, watch bad television. Great. I'm all for it. But when you're at the office, you have a persona that is enthusiastic, positive. It's a strategic decision that you're making to be enthusiastic. So keep that in mind too. That's a really good one to remember that it's you know, it's up to you to strategize how you behave and you can. You can do it much easier than you think, once you actually realize it, understand it and start putting it into practice.


08:36
So what kills enthusiasm? So many things: toxic coworkers, burnout, boredom, lack of recognition. Maybe you just finished this great big project and you're so proud, and they say, "Thanks a lot," and they give you another one, and they don't even give you any acknowledgement. It happens, especially early in your career. That will happen a lot, or worse, you'll be in a meeting and someone else will take total credit for it, or if it goes poorly. They'll blame it on you, because that's corporate America. That's how it works. So you have to get used to those things. Don't take them personally, right? But in the meantime, they will affect you. We are again. We're human beings. We are affected by these things. Take small breaks. Get up from your desk when you're just feeling like maybe just just can't handle the idea of even putting your fingers on the keyboard, get up, go into the kitchen, get a bottle of water, take a walk around the block. Something that changes the scenery. What they call a micro break. Five minutes or less can make a huge difference. I actually have a friend, Candice Lazar, who is teaching breathing, this type of breathing exercises that can calm you and change your mood, you know so easily, so I'll put links to her material in the show notes for this episode. You'll want to check that out, reframing your purpose if you're burned out. And you know you're just struggling.


10:03
When's your vacation? Is your vacation in two weeks? My vacation's in two weeks. I can handle this and and reset your commitment and just get through those two weeks. Reframe what you're doing, if you think you are, you know, just not being appreciated, and you can't believe you're working so hard and nobody pays attention. What's the bigger cause of your work? For example, we do social media for nonprofits that do amazing work. So when I get a little, you know, worn out because I'm working a lot of hours that week and it's on that particular client, I look at the bigger picture, and that can change your level of enthusiasm for getting that work done. Because, trust me, enthusiasm can help you fight procrastination, too, and we all suffer from that. I know it.


10:49
So another thing you can do is set one goal a day for something that's going to energize you, something you want to work on, something you're happy to do, and that, again, will help you get that enthusiasm back. And I would actually describe enthusiasm as a form of self-leadership. It's things that you can, you know, create behavior patterns. You can create things that you can put into place. You can put them on your schedule. You can run them down on paper, whatever you need to do so that you can use these tools to bring back your enthusiasm. It's well worth the effort. So how could you boost your enthusiasm today? Here's some great ideas. Matter of fact, I would just put these into play on a regular basis: smile and say hello first when you see someone. If you're walking down the hallway, you come in in the morning, be the one with the smile and the greeting. It makes a difference. Write a killer thank-you note if you met someone at an event. Matter of fact, I'd need to do this this afternoon. If you met someone at an event, send them a little note. Send them an email saying, "Hey, it was great to meet you. Let's stay connected." If it's someone that's worth reaching out to, set up a coffee date. Go ahead and do those things, do those outreaches, because those will not only create enthusiasm, but they also build your network, and that's really important. 


12:11
Make a commitment to yourself to learn something small every day. Now that is a really interesting idea. I really love the continuous learning mindset, and if you can cultivate that again, will contribute to your success, but just something small every day. What is it that you're interested in? If you want to learn how to, you know, be a sommelier. You want to go to wine tastings, read about it, go to events. Make that hobby, you know, something that helps you learn every day. I am a big fan of a lot of the nature documentaries—Planet Earth and those kinds of things. You can learn things and they're also very relaxing, and can take out the stress that can get in the way of your enthusiasm.


12:57
Another thing you can do at the office to boost that enthusiasm is to volunteer for something that's slightly outside of your comfort zone. When they're saying, "Hands up for a project," and you know it's in the direction you want to go, but you might not be there yet. Volunteer anyway, get the position, or get the project, and then learn how to do it quickly as you go, or, as we say, build the plane while you're flying it. It is possible, and it's honestly how most people learn. You learn really well by doing more than by studying. So if you're studying and you just don't think you're ready, just get out there and do it. Trust me, when you have that anxiety and fear of the early stages of a new job, you have a lot of enthusiasm in most cases. So yeah, it's another way to, you know, get out of that comfort zone, and you will immediately boost your and boost and elevate your energy.


13:50
So my final tip is, you don't have to be the loudest person in the room to be enthusiastic, but you need to care. And when you show that you care about the people in the room, about the work that you're doing. People will pay attention. They will, and it will help you get to that next step on the career ladder.


14:10
So again, Lori Jo Vest, Work Mom Says is my podcast. If you're watching this on YouTube, please give me a like, a share, a comment. I'd love to hear from you. If you're on Spotify, please hit some stars for me, and you can also visit my website, where we have some blog articles and all of the past podcast episodes. And that is at workmomsays.com, and finally, I am an open networker on LinkedIn. I have a book on Amazon called Work Mom Says, Don't Be an Idiot: 38 Lessons You Don't Want to Learn the Hard Way. Go get a copy. It's a great set of lessons for young professionals to teach you to play the emotional contact sport of business so you can experience less drama and more success. So pick up a copy. And I will see you again soon.