Work is hard, work is emotional. It’s hard working for a living, making our way through life by earning some kind of wage so we can feed, clothe, and shelter ourselves. Somewhere in there, we have to find meaning in our work, so time passes faster or so work can be rewarding. But what if your coworkers, boss, or company is getting you down? In fact, what if you’re now miserable? What do you do? Look for another job? Perhaps it’s time for a little self awareness. One of the easiest ways to find self-awareness is using Excel, so you can leave emotions out of your process.

Self-Awareness through Excel

What’s really driving your unhappiness in your job? Not challenged? Bad boss? Toxic boss! Nice boss, but one that’s not a very good manager? It can be one thing or many things. But before you throw in the towel or curl up into a ball in the corner of your cube, try to assess your situation. I find that creating a spreadsheet is the best way to leave emotions out of your assessment.

I use a tool that’s recommended in a job search and salary negotiation book that’s perfect for this type of self-awareness inventory. I use Excel for everything, but especially in times of having to analyze something where my emotions can get in the way. It gives me objectivity. Sometimes the spreadsheet results are startling.

Excel Spreadsheet

Basically, you identify all the elements of your work life: environment, coworkers, boss, career development, etc. Come up with a way to weight what’s more important to you, rank it, so you can evaluate what’s really going on. I recommend some basic drivers such as the following:

• Work environment: people, coworkers, boss, and office location.
• Compensation: salary, stock options, commission, PTO.
• Timing: exit strategy
• Career management: ability to develop new skills, able to be an expert in my area, and ability to develop management experience

What’s the Data Telling You?

Once you figured out a system, review what the data is telling you. Perhaps you thought you didn’t value your friends at work, but the numbers say you do. Maybe your office location, like being close to home, is worth the trade off of a bad boss. Learning these things help, but what about the drivers that you think are driving you crazy. Are they really? Does your data support your perception?

My point is that having a tool like this allows you to leave your emotions out of it so you can think through an action plan to cope with your situation by highlighting areas that are problematic for you so you can turn it around. It also gives you some insight on how long you may be willing to stay since you may be getting something out of your job that you didn’t expect. At least you’ll have something to help in your self-awareness so you don’t mistakenly think that the grass is greener on the other side. Because, the chances are, it might not be. Try the spreadsheet approach. I think you’ll get hooked and then start using your spreadsheet on everything from deciding on buying a house to salary negotiations.

Similar Posts:

• The 12 Simple Self-Management Strategies: Simple Self-Management Strategy #12 – Measure yourself to promote yourself
• The 12 Simple Self-Management Strategies: Simple Self-Management Strategy #2 - What haunts You in Your Job?
• The 12 Simple Self-Management Strategies: Simple Self-Management Strategy #3 – Leave Emotions at Home
• You Have The Job Offer, Now It’s Time To Negotiate Salary
• 23 Ways to be Happy at Work: #12 - Don’t react