Ask any boss about hard working, key employees who drive their businesses forward and one of the words they will invariably use to describe them is dedicated. Dedication is an exceedingly strong feeling of support and loyalty for something or someone. To run any successful enterprise you must have available, and be able to depend upon, dedicated employees.
Dedication is one of three attributes or hallmarks of worker engagement, the other two being vigor and absorption. Engaged employees are what every employer wants. Feeling engaged at work is what every employee wants. To feel engaged while on-the-job is to love one’s work.
On fire, purpose driven, dedicated employees are often the first to show up and the last to leave work. Sometimes, they have to be reminded to quit working and go home. It is hard for them to break away, they love what they do so much.
This isn’t because they are workaholics or toiling long hours out of fear for losing their jobs. They genuinely love what they do. At the beginning of every work day they are anxious to get started. They feel energized by what they do. They feel they are making a difference. On some fundamental level, they are the difference. Have you ever felt this way about your work?
Here are 9 unmistakable signs of employee dedication:
- A visible, almost infectious passion for one’s work
- Positive attitude and demeanor in personal interactions with other employees and with the patients, clients or customers
- Punctuality at all times for work, meetings and functions
- High attendance/low absenteeism at work, meetings and functions.
- Knows the history, mission, values and vision of the business
- Demonstrates initiative often
- Flexibility when it comes to change
- High work ethic
- Reputation of getting things done
The opposite of worker engagement is worker burnout. The hallmarks of job related burnout – emotional exhaustion, cynicism, and a feeling of inefficacy – are the exact opposite of engagement. A business burning out it’s employees will never thrive. Employees who are burned out will eventually leave their workplace when the pain of staying becomes greater than the pain of leaving, of making a job or career change.
Burned out employees are easy to spot. They are not dedicated. They are miserable. They may be present but most of their day is spent begrudgingly doing just what they are required to do and no more, biding time until they are off from work. They long for the weekends and dread Mondays. Have you recognized this in others? Have you ever felt this way about your work?
The good news is, it doesn’t have to be this way. If you no longer feel dedication toward your work, perhaps it is time to ask some basic questions. If you have an unhappy workforce with high turnover, perhaps it is time to determine which of the major job-employee mismatches are burning out your staff and provide needed remedies.
Do you feel you are burning out or already burned out? Is your work in alignment with your core values? Are you doing your life’s work, what you were called to do, using your own natural and unique set of talents and abilities? Do you love what you do but hate your current workplace environment?
Answering these and other questions can give you some direction and clarity as you choose the right next steps. It is possible to find purposeful work for which you are passionate and dedicated. If you own a business, it’s possible to create a work environment which fosters an engaged and dedicated workforce. Check back here for future posts concerning how. If you would like immediate attention, please call me now at 919-394-7742 or press the CONTACT button below.
Fantastic article, succinct and right to the point, thank you Dr. Gaither!
who’s the author
Sorry for the delay in answering your question, Julie. I’m the author, Clark Gaither, MD.
ur very intellegent …..awesome ..this shows u r dedicated a lot towards ur work
Hmmm. These can be misleading. When employees don’t feel appreciated – they lose enthusiasm. Lose the spark. When they are not acknowledged for working hard by way of kind remarks or adequate pay raises – they lose the drive to put in the extra effort. It’s a feeling of “why bother?” When employees see others repeatedly receive special treatment because of friendships formed with the bosses, and they witness the comfort and financial perks those people receive, morale is diminished greatly. Cannot call that feeling burnout. It’s disappointment. It’s wishing for fairness. And it happens a lot.
I am dedicated to my job, I love working for the company. It has been good to me whether my work can get frustrating and stressful, at the end of the day I still have a job and do all again the next day. I don’t go in thinking, “I work too damn hard I deserve a pay raise.” All that matters is it gets me out of the house, & I get paid for what I like doing. I don’t get any recognition but the way I see it is if my boss hasn’t said anything to me and still keeps me on the payroll that’s enough recognition and appreciation for me. Opportunities come along but I don’t take it. I enjoy where I’m at. If you are looking for a job that’s gonna pay you for your worth than you are not gonna enjoy any job. Money isn’t everything, but having a job that you like is.