DO MORE OF THE WORK YOU LOVE

I’ll never forget when an HR leader told me that we should expect to dislike 30% of our jobs, especially if we were leaders.

He wasn’t talking about the occasional shoulder shrug or meeting-doze, he meant real dislike. It was the price to pay.

That equals about 70 days, every year, of not feeling our best at work. That expectation shocked me – does it shock you?

In 1985, sociologists defined how Americans view their work. Some saw work as a job: a way to pay the bills. Others saw work as a career to be sacrificed for, a way to achieve status. The remainder viewed work as a calling, or being compelled to find fulfillment.

Whatever work represents for you, it’s unlikely that every moment of your week is sprinkled with fairy dust. But, must we accept that we will not, or should not, gain positive benefits from such a significant part of our life?

The short answer is no! And, thankfully, “job crafting” is here to help.

“Job crafting” is a concept created by Jane E Dutton and Amy Wrzesniewski, and describes how we can shape job descriptions by aligning them to fit our needs, values and preferences.

Sounds like organized chaos? Not necessarily.

Job crafting doesn’t give a free pass to watch Netflix all day or to join your CEOs Zoom calls! It’s about customizing your role to align with your passions and skills to benefit you and your organization. Jobs can be crafted by removing or adding tasks, creating different relationships and/or assigning different meaning to our work.

Research examples include a corporate auditor who used her passion for crime novels to solve a work challenge, fitness trainers who led classes in prisons and a teacher weaving his love for rock music into his lessons.

So, if you’re looking to get the spark back into your job, here are three ways to begin:

Decide what lights you up.

Job crafting means getting clear on the work you want to do more of and the way you do it. And, only you know how that feels.
Start by reflecting on your career. We’ve all had moments we’d rather forget: mistakes, challenges, disappointments. However, I guarantee that you’ve also had experiences where you felt alive, helpful, or satisfied. Name those feelings, and remember the elements of the experiences that helped you feel that way. What do you want more of?

Think beyond your job title.

A compliance director once told me that she sometimes missed her career as a project leader. She didn’t want to leave her current role, but was still passionate about creating systems to help people. She saw how to help her company improve its project issues but felt it wasn’t her place to get involved.

When we “job craft”, it’s natural to worry about stepping on others’ toes. Try not to let your title stop you from being curious and collaborative. Perhaps you could add your passion and experience to a committee, or in a casual “advisory” capacity?

Open yourself up to the different ways you can get involved: you may be surprised at the good you can do.

Help your leader to help you.

If you want to “job craft,” you don’t need the perfect plan before you speak with your leader, but they will appreciate learning:

•  Why you’re passionate about the work you want to do more of

• How it will help the business’ goals

• What you need to do it

So, before talking, decide what you need. Would flexibility help, so you can join that volunteer meeting? Permission to start a project? Budget to retrain skills?

Your organization may not be able to give you exactly what you need right away. However, a good leader will welcome the opportunity to learn more about your passions – your conversation will be a gift because they’ll know how to help you grow and contribute. Take a breath and be open to the opportunities that come up.

Job crafting isn’t “woo-woo”—far from it. It has been proven to boost employee happiness, engagement, employability and performance.

We have one life to live – doing more of the work we love isn’t selfish; it benefits everyone. What’s stopping you from trying?

This article was written for Twin Cities Business: see it live here.

I’m Laura Best, a motivational keynote speaker and bestselling author. I help organisations activate passion to drive energy, engagement, and performance through my Practical Inspiration® approach. If you’re thinking about how this conversation could support your leaders or teams, you can learn more about my keynote work here.

What Turns Energy On at Work

Have you ever wondered what actually creates energy at work?

I’ll never forget a company meeting in my Corporate Life where we were gathered for a big moment. The founders had called everyone together, and there was a buzz in the room. We assumed we were about to hear the strategy for the year ahead, or at least the story behind where the organization was going.

Instead, a single, large revenue number was presented on screen.

That was it…

I remember looking around the room. I was relatively new, but it didn’t take much reading between the lines to see what was happening. The most senior leaders were energized by that number. It clearly represented success and future rewards for them. For everyone else, there was a sense of confusion and flatness – not resistance as such, but a buzz-kill hanging in the air about what this actually meant.

I felt it too. A desire to contribute, mixed with uncertainty about why this goal should matter to us. I thought:

• Why were we being asked to push so hard for “growth”?

• What did that growth represent in terms of opportunity for us?

• Why did it matter?

That moment has stayed with me because it highlights an opportunity that leaders are still navigating today.

How do you create motivation and engagement that people genuinely want to bring, rather than something they feel obliged to offer?

Many organizations put a great deal of effort into extrinsic motivation. Mission, vision, and values statements, benefits programs, ping-pong tables, free pizza. All of these have a role to play but what truly makes the difference is what’s driving them.

Intrinsic motivation comes from inside the individual. It’s about meaning, contribution, and connection. It’s about whether someone can see how their effort links to results, both to the organisation and to themselves. This is where passion starts to matter, not as enthusiasm for its own sake, but as a personal connection to the work. When that connection happens, motivation stops being something leaders have to manufacture.

Engagement works in a similar way, although it’s often misunderstood. It’s easy to think of engagement as something created in big moments; the town halls, kick-offs, or all-company meetings. Those moments need to happen, but they’re not where engagement is sparked and it rarely is where it’s sustained.

Instead, engagement is shaped by the experience of work itself. For example, how teams collaborate and how decisions are made, whether relationships feel trust-based, especially in a world where many people are working remotely. It’s felt just as much in the everyday actions as anywhere else.

One of the most powerful opportunities is when leaders make space to talk about what lights people up and then take that information seriously. Not as a side conversation, and not as a promise they can’t keep, but as an input into how work is shaped. That might mean adjusting responsibilities, creating opportunities to use particular strengths, or finding ways for people to contribute in areas they feel genuinely passionate about.

The key is that those conversations are matched with action. Motivation and engagement grow when people see that what matters to them is respected and reflected in how work gets done.

This doesn’t replace goals, accountability, or standards. In fact, it strengthens them. When people feel connected to their work, to one another, and to the parts of the job that spark their passion, energy increases, effort feels more sustainable, and performance becomes something people are proud to deliver.

That’s the opportunity!

Motivation and engagement aren’t programs to roll out or levers to pull. They’re built through the way work is designed, conversations are held, and people are supported to bring more of themselves into what they do.

When leaders focus there, performance follows.

I’m Laura Best, a motivational keynote speaker and bestselling author. I help organisations activate passion to drive energy, engagement, and performance through my Practical Inspiration® approach. If you’re thinking about how this conversation could support your leaders or teams, you can learn more about my keynote work here.

PASSION AS A PERFORMANCE STRATEGY

I once worked at an organization where executive leadership had a favorite challenge question for employees: “Are you all in?”

You were expected to say yes: It wasn’t really a discussion, it was more of a declaration. And heaven forbid if you hesitated…

When I was asked, I remember feeling a mix of pride and intense discomfort, along with a clear sense of professional manipulation. Pride, because I cared deeply about my work and wanted to do well, wanted to contribute. Discomfort, because “all in” is a boundary-less phrase. I’m sure it was meant to sound inspiring, but it was also very intentionally designed to test the employee. Are you willing to give it ALL?

I’ve thought about that question many times since, especially as conversations about performance and commitment have become more intense over the past few years, and as organizations look to build resilience and results in a world that feels far more demanding.

I’m sure I don’t need to tell you that there’s a growing tension between what organizations want and what employees are willing, or able, to give.

In my 25+ years in corporate and years sharing my keynotes, I’ve spoken with thousands of leaders, and here’s what I see. High-performing organizations treat high performance as…table-stakes (obvious statement, but still fair to say.)

They have leadership competencies carefully crafted by HR, behaviors, metrics, and goals that every employee is expected to meet. It’s the way of the working world.

What differentiates the organizations that truly stand out is that they don’t stop there.

The organizations that make the biggest difference nurture team members and leaders who aren’t just checking boxes or performing professionalism in a prescribed way. They encourage people to bring something extra to their work, whether that’s their way of thinking, the care they show for others, or the individual strengths and passions that shape how they serve clients, colleagues, and teams. And that encouragement is matched with trained people leaders and programs to enable that passion to flourish.

This is why passion matters so much to performance in the workplace, not as a buzzword or a demand, but as a genuine source of motivation, engagement, and energy. When people are able to bring more of who they are into their work, performance doesn’t just improve in the short term, it becomes more resilient, more human, and more sustainable over time.

I’m Laura Best, a motivational keynote speaker and bestselling author. I help organisations activate passion to drive energy, engagement, and performance through my Practical Inspiration® approach. If you’re thinking about how this conversation could support your leaders or teams, you can learn more about my keynote work here.

The Work You Loved Isn't Dead. It's Your Secret Sauce!

There can be a point, especially mid-career, where you realize you’ve become distant from the work you used to love. You’ve gathered experience, built skills up the wazoo, earned respect, led teams and delivered results. It all looks right on paper, but something still feels out of reach.

The research backs this up. Gallup’s latest global workplace study shows that only about one in five employees are engaged in their work, and managers report even lower levels. So, the irony is that the further you move into leadership, the easier it becomes to drift from the work that you love! 

I know how this feels: it was my reality in 2014. 

I was leading two teams, leading multi-year, multi-million dollar projects all while pitching new business. On the outside, it all looked good - and I enjoyed those who I worked with (including an inspiring client). However, I began to realize that I was losing sight of the work I truly loved to do, not just succeed at. Most of all, I couldn’t see the impact of what we were creating, which made me question the 60+ hour weeks I was giving.

"Reaching back" gives you vital clues 

We can sometimes hesitate to look back in our lives. But, the thing is, reaching back isn't a sign of failure, in fact, it can help us identify clues about what genuinely lights us up - and what we can offer more of to others. 

Think about the roles or moments when you felt most alive in your work, the most like YOU. What was happening around you? What were you doing that brought out your best thinking? What helped you feel capable, creative or fully involved? When you break those moments down, you start to see patterns that still matter today, even if your job has evolved.

If, for example, you loved project management earlier in your career, it might not have been the schedules or templates you miss. Maybe it was helping other people be successful in their roles, or solving a complicated problem.

Even if you can't necessarily "be" a project manager anymore, are there components of that work that you can bring into your job today?

It may be a mindset shift about how you manage your team, or it may actually be getting your hands happily dirty again with the details. Perhaps it's joining a committee, or volunteering outside of work where you can apply some of that skill and that love for what you did in a different way.

This is really what We Reach Back to Move Forward is about. We spend so much time building our careers that we forget to honor what lights us up. We file it away, update the title on LinkedIn, move on to the next thing, and never stop to ask what that earlier work gave us.

Because if something lit you up years ago, there’s a chance that passion is still there, and it can fuel where you go next.

A question for your journal

Was there a time in your career when you did work you truly loved? Perhaps it was the way the work was done, or who you did it with, or the end result. What was that work, and why did it light you up?

How To Add Adventure To Our Lives

When I was 26, I made a life-changing leap by emigrating to the United States. Leaving behind everything familiar to start anew was invigorating and daunting.

I left London with a suitcase, $500 and my snowboard, with my beloved Dad waving me off, telling me to "fly". I remember the first time I went grocery shopping in Minneapolis, and realized how different the cereal boxes were (isn't it funny how details stay with us?). And, the shock of my first midwestern winter, plus the loneliness of being a long, long way from home.

Then, the ad agency that I was just finding my feet at announced big salary cuts.

Shortly after, I was laid off, along with a third of the staff, just 9 months after I had landed on US soil (!!). 

 I had no money, no job and as a visa holder, 3 weeks to get a new one (almost impossible) or leave the country, and my adventure behind (unthinkable.)

Thankfully, I had a circle of supportive friends, one of whom offered me a job in his start-up. From there, my career in Digital Marketing and my adventure in America continued. 

"Adventure" often isn't easy. It's tied so closely to dreams, to our sense of identity and hope.

And yet, when we find it, it can fill us up more than any Netflix show.

As we go through life, adventure can often seem to fade, with bills, email, politics, laundry, jobs, caring for others. And yet, it still has the capacity to remind us of our spark and our unique abilities to enjoy life. 

And so, if we want to do more of the things we love, it becomes even more important to find the moments of adventure in our lives, even if we only have an hour to spare. 

If you're feeling this, consider:

1. What Thrills You?

OK, so bungee jumping may not be your thing anymore (kudos to anyone who has – it's on my "hell no!" list), even if that was how you got your thrills in your 20s. Why did you love it? Was it the sense of freedom? Overcoming danger? The sense of accomplishment? How can you (safely) find those feelings again, in a way that fits who you are today?

2. Adventure Doesn't Need To Be Physical 

"Adventure" often looks like oceans or cliff faces, but really, all it means is exploring unknown territory. You can find your adventure in whatever way you choose. As we progress in our careers and lives, the experiences we gather can make us feel that we have nothing more to learn – not in an arrogant way, more like "I have enough, I know enough." But, there is always more to explore. So, ask yourself: What is unknown to you? What spark lies there that you'd like to uncover? 

3. Bravery Is More Than A BandAid

Adventure requires courage, but we often only realize how brave we were when we look back on how we leapt, how we crushed our challenges. Those moments can be big and small, from wiping away a tear from an injury, pivoting your career, starting a family after a tragic loss, to raising your hand to share a controversial opinion. 

Remember the bravery inside of you, and apply it to the adventure you desire!

Tom Cruise has a passion problem (do you?)...

“Acting isn’t my job. It’s who I am.”

That’s a quote from Tom Cruise. Yes, he of the high-speed running, biplane dangling and clearly powerful vitamins.

Tom is an extreme example of someone whose passion has fused entirely with their identity. And, as I watched Mission Impossible (thoroughly enjoying it BTW!) it made me wonder: is that something to admire? Or is it something to avoid?

When I speak about passion in my keynotes, I describe the two kinds defined by academics:

• Harmonious passion: energizes you, fits with your life and leaves you and others better off for having pursued it

• Obsessive passion: takes over, eats away at your peace and destroys everything that matters. (Scary, right?!)

Tom is fascinating because he blurs the line. His commitment is bonkers: he identifies the goal knowing he's a novice, he learns, he practices, fails, and does it again. For years.

There’s much to admire in that kind of drive. When we see someone throw their full self into their work, it can be a reminder of what’s possible with such belief. But then there’s the other side.

In interviews, Tom talks about his 7-day weeks (easy with unlimited resources – I don't get the sense that Tom makes a habit of throwing wet laundry into the dryer in a 6am mild panic.) You wonder what a lazy Sunday looks like for him, or if he has those mornings where he just can’t be bothered to get out of bed??

This is all fine, but what happens for us mere mortals when life shifts?

I’ve talked with too many people recently who’ve been laid off after 15, 20, 25 years of investing everything in their work. I see the unmooring in their eyes. (I feel it too, I've been laid off twice in my career.)

It's that feeling of "what now?", and also "who am I, really?"

That’s why our outside-of-work passions can be so important. If our work changes (it might), if you shift (you will), those passions will still be there to remind you who you are.

So, here are 3 reminders to keep in mind: 

Love your work, but keep yourself. 

You can be passionate without being consumed. You can give your whole self to the moment without giving your everything to it. I do this when I share my keynotes with audiences: that’s me, up there, connecting fully to what I love in the hope it will give something to you. AND, I have other passions in my life that ground me. 

Passion isn't always "intensity".

Sometimes passion is loud, sometimes it’s quiet. Sometimes it looks like skydiving or jumping off a mountain, and it can also be learning to cook a new dish at your kitchen table. Both are real: one isn’t better than the other.

You can be more than your work. 

Even if your work is a big part of who you are, it doesn't need to be all you are. Make space for the other parts: your art, your friendships, your curiosity, your rest. Those don’t detract from your passion. In fact, they feed it.

Remember that you get to make YOUR path.

(And for the record, if your story includes an hour on the couch watching labradors with swimming goggles playing with tennis balls I’m cheering for that too :)

How to Share Your Passion at Work

Showing passion at work can be one of the most powerful ways we can help ourselves (and our careers) grow
– but it can sometimes feel challenging to do.

Now, before I start, let me be clear: if you don't feel safe being "you" in your work environment, sharing your passions should not be your first priority.

However, if you are rediscovering or exploring the things that light you up, and you see opportunities to live those passions at work, then articulating and finding ways to pursue them can be invaluable to your career and your sense of self.

Let's talk about the Number One Rule for showing passion at work – and making progress with it.

Show up with bright-eyed optimism.

Show up with an excitement about the possibility of change, with ideas on how to solve it, with back-up ideas for the inevitable compromise.

This isn't the same as toxic positivity. This is a keen desire to educate, to lead, to roll up your sleeves and make things happen, KNOWING that people will follow you slowly.

Don't just demand action. Come with a plan.

And – above all, be honest about what you're feeling.

People often hold back from sharing their passion at work because it doesn't fit neatly into their current role. They fear it could look disloyal or it could rock the boat.

But remember: good managers want to KNOW what lights you up.

Great managers create a space for you to shine that light.

If you show this optimism, if you put your heart into explaining context, building bridges, volunteering, working hard, and still the organization isn't listening or acting? Then you have three choices:

1. Articulate your passion and concerns about progress to a compassionate leader within your organization.

They may have valuable context that can help you make change happen. Don't assume that inaction or a lack of understanding is all about you. If your organization has a healthy culture, you may just need some new information to help your approach.

2. Stay at your job and find a creative outlet outside work.

Sometimes, the organization you're working may not be the best place for your passions. That can be OK. Not every job needs to be passion-filled. A job can be a job. But, DO NOT simply push your passion down. Resentment will win, and that won't help anybody.

3. Make your passion your job.

If your passion is so strong and you've decided that you want your daily work to BE that passion (oh, and you want to have it pay your bills, important point if you're a grown up), recognize that your current organization may not be the right fit. It doesn't make them bad people, it just means you need to find a different place to share your talents.

What experience have you had articulating and acting on your passion?

Want to Impress a CEO? It's Not Just Your Work Wins They're Looking For...

"I want to find people who are passionate people."

This wasn't said by a life coach or motivational speaker. It was Rich Barton, founder and former CEO of Zillow, a business leader who has built $$$$$ in revenue and companies of thousands of employees.

In a recent interview with Tim Ferriss, Barton revealed that his favorite section of resumes isn't experience, education or skills. It's the "interests" section.

What CEOs (Like Rich) Are Really Looking For

Why would a CEO care so much about what you do outside of work? Because passion reveals something fundamental about who you are.

Barton doesn't just scan this section, he watches for how candidates light up when discussing their passions. He's not just reading words on a page; he's studying energy, enthusiasm, and authenticity.

"They'd better be able to light up on it," he explains.

Does this sound like a challenge? I think it's meant to! He's saying: this is table stakes.

However, we shouldn't be put off. It's actually incredibly helpful, because Rich is sharing how he's evaluating talent. He's looking beyond credentials to find that "spark" that indicates:

• Energy that sustains through challenges

• Confidence that comes from standing up and sharing

• Commitment that shows you can go deep on something

• Curiosity that drives continuous improvement

All qualities of high-performing leaders...

The Resume Section You're Probably Neglecting

If you've ever hastily added "reading, travel, and hiking" to your resume without giving it a second thought, you're not alone. I used to do the same! (Sometimes, I used to add a what-I-thought-was-humorous "eating cupcakes" line to see if I could get away with it - never worked...!)

We think these "interests" don't matter. We worry that we'll be judged for wanting "work life balance" which for some leaders (Reid Hastings (Netflix), looking at you, grrrr) is a "never hire" criteria (Reid finds it hard to accept that work-lifers would never DIE ON THE SWORD FOR their company...easy for him to say...)

So, if you're job-seeking right now, consider this a not-so gentle nudge. That little section at the bottom of your resume might be what sets you apart in a sea of similars.

Avoid the temptation to hide your passions. Instead, share them. Be specific. Instead of listing "cooking," mention "experimenting with North African spices" or "mastering the art of sourdough bread." Instead of "music," share that you've been teaching yourself jazz piano for three years. Or, if you are a spreadsheet geek, share your volunteering with the work committee that values your help in balancing the books.

Already Employed? This Still Matters!

For those building careers, Barton's POV carries equal weight. Cultivating your passions isn't just about personal fulfillment, we can actually consider it professional development.

When you invest time in what lights you up, you're developing transferable qualities: resilience, creativity, and the ability to push through plateaus. These are the same qualities that make you valuable at work.

If you're struggling to justify time for your passions because work demands are overwhelming, try reframing: your passions aren't competing with your career—they're enhancing it.

Here's How To Not Worry About It

Laura, you may say. Yeah yeah, this is all great, BUT, what if I share an unusual passion, and that disqualifies me? Turns them off? Implies something I can't convey in a resume?

I get it, no-one wants to be judged or misunderstood, especially when the stakes are high (job to get, bills to pay.)

Think of it this way: their response to your passion should – at the very baseline – be respectful, and any hiring leader worth their salt should at least fake a modicum of curiosity about it as part of an interview process or happy hour.

If they don't? That REALLY HELPFUL DATA for you to store away. Or a red flag, depending on the reaction.

You deserve to be respected and honored for ALL of you, not just your "Q4 earnings reports wins" or that time you "spearheaded a cross functional team from x to do y."

Your Turn

What passion would you proudly include on your resume? What activity makes you light up when you talk about it? The answer might be more valuable to your career than you realize.

Want to watch/hear Rich Barton's full interview with Tim Ferriss? Listen here.

Leaders: Want to Close the "Ambition Gap"? Make Work Worth Loving!

Want to hear my solution for the increasing gender "Ambition Gap" that the latest Women in the Workplace report from McKinsey/LeanIn shared?

Passion.

McKinsey/Lean In's "ambition gap" states that women are "less interested" in promotion to men (6% less interested, by the data.) The report points to declining sponsorship, fewer women in early people-leadership roles and the very real impact of burnout – all valid. But, it misses one huge reason behind the hesitation:

The widening gap between what a promotion actually involves and the work people want more of in their lives.

Is it Really an "Ambition" Gap?

The high-performing women leaders I know are ALL ambitious, without a doubt. However, when they look at their corporate career path, they're asking questions like:

• Will this new role give me more room to contribute in a way that feels meaningful?

• Will I get more opportunities to bring my full power, skillset and energy to the team?

• Will I have more authority to focus on the work I feel passionate about?

• Will I be able to spend more time immersed in solving problems, creating something new or improving something that matters?

In many cases, the answer is no. Sure, the compensation may improve, as well as the perceived authority. But, the trade-off in how they will feel about their work – the uncertainty of that positive impact for them and others – may well hold them back.

When that's the reality, hesitation makes complete sense. But the thing is, it shouldn't reflect the individual (the fact they're no longer "interested"). It reflects an organizational opportunity.

Passion's Role in the Workplace

This is where passion becomes a very practical tool.

By passion, I mean the sense of contribution, connection and energy people feel about work that lights them up. When someone spends more time on work that aligns with their strengths, values and interests, they often show more confidence, curiosity and commitment. They can picture themselves in a bigger role because the future looks grounded in work that feels worthwhile and, just as importantly, feels like them.

Research shows that meaningful work is one of the strongest drivers of sustained performance and retention, and this holds true at every career stage (check out MDPI’s research on meaningful work and employee engagement) and the National Institutes of Health’s published research on meaningful work, well-being and turnover intention.

Passion alone will not fix the global, structural issues of inequity; those require serious attention and long-term change. But, it can be the catalyst for deeper individual contribution, genuine team support, and a truer commitment to an organizational mission.

How Leaders Can Respond

If ambition feels uncertain in your organization, take a closer look at how leaders are supporting these conversations and how roles and teams are shaped. A few places to begin:

• Train your people leaders to have productive, honest conversations with their direct reports about what lights them up. Give leaders the tools to help people identify and articulate the work they care about, without it being seen as a risky thing to admit.

• Allow teams to invest in work that often gets pushed to the sidelines. Non-negotiable “Passion Time” can be a simple and powerful way to create space for meaningful work.

• Treat meaningful work as part of development planning, not something extra people must squeeze in around their “real job.” Better yet – work the practice of "leading with passion" into your leadership competencies.

When organizations invest in this way, advancement starts to look like a path toward better work rather than a step away from what people truly love.

How To Lead When Comfort Calls Your Name

Walk into any workplace, virtual or otherwise, and you’ll hear a familiar story. People are whizzing through their back-to-back schedules, drinking from the proverbial firehose, barely stopping to eat, and then collapsing on the sofa on Friday evening with whatever show they’ve been saving all week.

I get it, trust me, and I'm hearing this from those I share my keynotes with. We all need rest (and just ask me about historical dramas on TV, I am the Queen of Comfort Watching!) But, when our weeks leave no space, we begin to over-rely on comfort. It stops being a reward, and instead becomes a driver of our choices and behavior.

Fancy a HUG?

One of the clearest examples is "job hugging". I'm sure you've heard of this trend, which is really more of an instinct to hold tightly to a role, not because it’s fulfilling, but because the job market feels unpredictable and drawing attention to yourself feels risky. As someone who's experienced layoffs twice in my career, I get it, and it's often the responsible choice, especially when there are bills to pay. But, what happens when that sense of duty turns into a comfort habit?

This is where the Spark We Refuse to Be Controlled by Comfort from my book Born to Buzz, becomes helpful. It's not meant to be a judgment, more of a reminder to us to be intentional with how we harness comfort in our leadership and work.

What this Spark offers us at work

When comfort begins to dictate the scale of your ambition, or if it begins to chip away at your courage or even your daily mood, then you know it's getting a little bit too big for its boots.

Signs that comfort is taking over sound like: “I’ll just stick to what I know,” or “I don’t want to stand out right now.” Or, my personal favorite "I just don't know how to....abc/xyz.)

Ironically, these thoughts may feel safe in the moment, but over time they can limit our contribution and dramatically dull our energy. Choosing courage over comfort, even in small ways, opens up possibilities again. It reconnects us with momentum, progress and meaning. For leaders, this matters more than we often acknowledge.

Here are some examples of how this can play out in different parts of the workplace.

For leaders

Let people see what lights you up! When leaders talk honestly about what motivates them, it brings people closer and strengthens the sense of purpose in their team. Even a small example of passion, whether from inside or outside work, builds connection and gives others permission to show up more fully. That weekend "hobby" could humanize you to your direct reports, give you lessons to draw from, or funny stories to share. (Listen to my Passion Chats podcast episode with Kristi Jacobson about her love for waterskiing and how that fuels her career in finance!)

For teams

Create space for small stretches. Teams that aren’t ruled by comfort make room to actually change things. They ask questions like, “What’s one thing we could try that would help us make more progress?”, or “Who wants to have a go at something new?”

Even better, if you've created space for your teams to share what lights them up, then there will be more willingness to collaborate and create together. Why? Because sharing passions creates connection, even if the passion is imperfect, or lives totally outside of your job description. Think of it like the gel that can show team members that they're just as human as each other.

For high performers

Pay attention to where comfort hides (usually it loves to hang out inside competence). When you’re relied on for doing your job exceptionally well, it’s easy to stay with work that comes easily. It keeps everything moving, and you keep getting chosen (that always feels good, right?) but it can quickly narrow your sense of possibility, let alone your energy.

Now, I'm not advising you to quit your daily tasks and throw yourself into a brand new role that you instantly create chaos with (or worse, pull an Eat, Pray, Love!) The trick here is doing what you do well but USING that ability to create space to try something new.

Think about it: you're a proven expert. So, THAT knowledge should be your comfort, right? Hold that close, and keep sharing your strength AND keep growing.

One way to start (especially if you're feeling over-scheduled) is to give yourself one opportunity each quarter where you’re not the automatic expert. Yep, you heard me - you DON'T HAVE TO WIN! (not this time, anyway...)

Start with considering what that looks like for you:

• Raising your hand to ask that question that no-one else wants to ask

• Having coffee with that person you've secretly admired/been a bit scared of (we've all got one of those.)

• Going to an event you wouldn't normally walk into alone...

You may be surprised at what you learn, and how it makes you feel. Note it down, and repeat next quarter.

A last reminder to add to your journal

Comfort will always have a place in our lives (I mean, what type of world would we live in otherwise?!) It helps us recover, reset and ENJOY life. But, if comfort becomes the default guide for our decisions, our careers and happiness can shrink to fit it.

When we create space for courage alongside comfort, we rediscover energy, creativity and the sense that our work genuinely matters.