Have you, or colleagues, lost your Mojo? Want to help find it again? Then ask yourself some searching questions….
‘Mojo’ comes up a lot in the coaching I’ve been doing of late, or rather the lack of it. It’s my shorthand for enthusiasm, zest and excitement for life, in work and beyond. Is the pandemic partly to blame? Years of lockdown and long periods of home working certainly haven’t helped; many of us have felt isolated. It brought home our own mortality, a stark reminder that we’ve no idea how long we have left on the planet.
We pick up the paper, turn on the news, scroll through our social media and it’s yet more gloom and doom; the cost of living crisis, the climate crisis, the ongoing sadness of the war in Ukraine.
It’s no wonder we get down, get stuck and question what the point of it all is.
Current questions from my coaching clients include;
• Why don’t I feel excited about my work and my life anymore?
• Do I stay in a job that is bringing me no joy, or it is me being joyless that isn’t
helping?
• I’ve been unfairly treated by my organisation, do I move on elsewhere, or draw a line under it and stay?
• How can I resurrect my drive and energy for work?
These are from people that are all doing meaningful public sector work, but are united in their search for some zest, some Mojo, literally wanting to find it again.
To help I’ve come up with a new model to structure sessions, with an acronym and some searching questions. Why not give it a go. Or try it with a colleague and let me know what most worked for you.
It’s called Finding your MOJO. Let’s start with M.
M is about helping to find your Motivation and Meaning.
What gives you purpose? What gets you out of bed every day? Do you need a reminder that what you do matters? This is far less about about pay, status or what society thinks. It’s about seeing the point of what you do. I’ve been coaching someone who’s role is about improving mental health and preventing suicides; I am amazed at the contribution she’s making, yet she’s lost that connection and meaning for her. Slowly she’s re-finding it.
O is for setting out your Options and Opportunities.
We always have options and choices. We can think things are fixed that really aren’t. We can choose our attitude. We can choose to change our relationships, where we work, where we live – ideally not all at the same time! So what are your options? Are there some opportunities out there too? When my kids left home I downsized to a small flat and campervan. I left my salary to go freelance. I’ve never been happier. We are so much more able to cope with change than we think we are. Can we ‘Feel the fear and do it anyway’?
J is for finding the Joy in our work and daily life.
I coach people who have forgotten that work can be fun; they’ve stopped enjoying what they do, simply surviving and certainly not thriving. Yet we do our best work when we are up, happy and enjoying what we do. How can we have more fun in the day to day? Part of it is about appreciating what we actually have, and what we can change. So, the boss isn’t great, not a motivator, we can’t change that. We can change our attitude and whether we come to work positive or pessimistic. Which is best for us, for our employers, for our communities?
O is for some Oomph.
That’s where my motivational ‘kick’ comes in, because this is actually your life we are talking about; there is no dress rehearsal. No one knows what’s round the corner so let’s make our time count. Why spend time moaning about the wrongs in the world, or the failings of others, the system, the Government. That won’t help. Spend the time being brilliant and kind and courageous and whatever version of you at your best there is. See the difference it makes to those around you – in all parts of your life.
I’d love to hear how you keep your motivation and whether these MOJO questions are useful to you and your teams. Give me a call if you need my help.