How to get employees engaged

Passion: It can’t be taught or measured, but it exists in each of us, and it can be honed to help us achieve greater success—both personally and professionally.

We’ve all heard the saying, “If you do what you love [i.e., what you’re passionate about], you’ll never work a day in your life.”

Unfortunately, most of us can’t make that claim. According to the Conference Board, which has been studying this issue for more than 22 years, only 45 percent of Americans are satisfied with their work—the lowest level since these surveys began in 1987.

A big factor people cite for job dissatisfaction is that their jobs aren’t interesting. Lynn Franco, director of the Conference Board’s Consumer Research Center and one of the authors of the 2010 report says, “What’s really disturbing about growing job dissatisfaction is the way it can play into the competitive nature of the U.S. workforce down the road and on the growth of the U.S. economy—all in a negative way.”

The flip side of this, which is what we all really want, is to have employees who are interested in their jobs because they’re more likely to be innovative and passionate about their work.

So the question is: Can you develop passion for your work in such a way that you can energize yourself and those around you to achieve higher levels of success and, in the process, perhaps even become the person who doesn’t consider work to be work?

The answer is really pretty simple. It just takes practice.

Experts say it takes 10,000 hours of practice to get really good at something (obsessive/compulsiveness aside). If you spend that much time getting really good at something, chances are you’re going to become passionate about it in the process, which ends up being a self-fulfilling prophecy of sorts. It leads to continuous learning (more practice), and it manifests itself in a desire to win (again, more practice). Ultimately, it becomes an invisible energy that can lead to visible effects on the people around you. In fact, it’s like a secret weapon you can use to influence others and create a competitive advantage.

When you achieve this level of passion, it’s palpable. It’s easy to see it in professional athletes, musicians, actors, artists and others whose jobs require a high degree of skill and innate talent. These individuals make what they do look effortless because they’ve honed their skills through practice. We all know passionate people. We marvel at their skills, their enthusiasm is contagious and they help make the workplace an exciting and fun place.

It’s important to listen to your employees and to inspire them through your own passion. You can help your employees become more interested in their jobs by being open to their ideas. If your employees are empowered to be creative and are given more control over what they do each day, they are likely to find their work more interesting and, ultimately, they might even become passionate about what they do—especially if you celebrate and recognize their contributions.

Practice your inner passion by understanding and developing your talents and cultivate the talents and skills of those around you. After all, a dispassionate manager is going to have a tough time bringing out passion in an employee.