What does it mean to feel engaged at work?

Employee “engagement” is a big buzz word in many organizations. When I was working for a large corporation they used to bring in pizza to help us feel engaged. To this day I have no clue what lunch has to do with me doing better work. But there it is.

 

Michael Davis started the conversation off by talking about being in the flow. It is easy to know you are engaged in what you are doing if time just slips by and the work magically gets done.

 

I wondered how happiness and engagement are related. Do you have to be enjoying yourself to be engaged?

 

Brandon Mahoney shared a great example of happiness and engagement not being the same thing. He is currently working on a project that is a lot of manual effort. Certainly not fun. But, he understands how it relates to the final outcome and the success of the company so he is engaged in doing.

 

Gary Fredricks mirrored this sentiment – there are lots of things at On Point Partners that he doesn’t love to do but he does them anyway because it’s his business and he wants it to succeed.

 

Does that mean you have to care about the outcome and understand how your work fits into it to be engaged? I think so. Does that mean you have to be happy doing it – no so much.

 

What do you think it means to be engaged at work and do you think it is something that can be externally created by an employer?

 

Connect with the panelists:
Brandon Mahoney: https://www.linkedin.com/in/brandoncmahoney/

Co Founder of Launch Point Labs, a start up studio and early venture funds where he is the expert in creating sales departments. currently based in Oregon

 

Michael Davis: https://www.linkedin.com/in/michaeldavisspeakingcpr/

Founder of Speaking CPR where he helps business leaders and speakers improve their presentations and speeches

 

Gary Fredericks: https://www.linkedin.com/in/garyfredericks/

CEO of On Point Partners where they provide back office services for small businesses

 

Dr Robyn Odegaard: https://www.linkedin.com/in/robynodegaard/

High Performance Concierge Psychologist and Quick Hits Facilitator

 

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  #QuickHits are designed to exercise your brain by letting you listen in on an unscripted conversation to get other people's thoughts on pertinent subjects. If you would like to join a conversation or have a topic you would like to hear discussed, please message me. https://www.DrRobynOdegaard.com

 

#engagement #disengagement #happyatwork