“We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence, then, is not an act, but a habit.” — Aristotle
You must have heard the term ‘work ethic’ quite a dozen times. Especially when it comes to interviews or resumes, now what does it really mean? What is it like to have a strong work ethic and how can you build a good work ethic and use them in your work life?
Work ethic is a set of values and morals that add to your work life. Work ethic is having those deep rooted set of principles that you follow to bring more to the table in regards to your work. Your work ethic shows how you carry yourself and how much you value your work and professional life. Few examples of work ethics are dedication, determination, discipline, professionalism etc.
Now that we have discovered what work ethic means, what exactly does having a work ethic do and why is it so important?
Work ethic increases your value in your work, you bring more productive energy to the table, your value in the job market increases and your energy seems more professional and outstanding. It adds more charm to your work life and helps you in not only being confident in your skills and committed to your work but also helps in gaining recognition and catching attention of other people. Work ethic comes in handy not only in offices but in your day to day life as well. Being punctual and committed and having the ability to be professional when needed, all of these skills will help you out on casual occasions just as much as they will in your professional life.
Thus, work ethic is important in order to have a great work life and also they include some vital life skills that will help us in our personal and professional life.
Following are some of the work ethics;
1.Discipline: Discipline is a must have work ethic, no matter if you are a student or an employee, being disciplined towards your work and performance increases your value and respect. Discipline by definition is the ability to behave and work in a controlled manner.
2. Integrity: Integrity in the work is so important, people are much more likely to hire people with good integrity and dedication towards their work. Integrity by definition is being honest and having strong morals. The ability to have integrity in your work life is an essential skill.
3. Teamwork: Teamwork is all about cooperating and building connections with your coworkers or with other employees/interns. Building connections is a crucial part of good work life and being good at teamwork also lands you a good reputation in the office/at work. For example, in a group project, you can connect with your coworkers and be able to lead the group and have excellent work output.
4. Punctual: Employers love people who are on time, time management is the second most if not the most important ethics to develop. Someone said “ if you are on time, you’re late” for example, being on time for your deadlines or always coming to work on time creates a charming image in front of others and creates a good impression on the employer.
How to develop some good work ethics?
Nothing comes without practice so naturally you will have to practice the set of morals in order to develop your own good work ethics. There are a lot of options to choose from, following are some simple but effective ways to develop your own set of work ethics and to maintain a good work life. It might take a while for you to be comfortable with your new lifestyle but you should always learn to expand your comfort zone.
Read books
This may seem like the most simple advice you’d ever get but reading books on developing work ethics and time management really help. Reading books on productivity, time management and work ethic will give you an idea of how to develop your own and you will find many great habits to incorporate in your own life from many famous authors and people. Following are some of the few books I personally recommend that are great for time management, work ethic and productivity :
5. The 4-Hour Workweek: Escape the 9–5, live anywhere and join the rich.
Watch Ted Talks
This is another simple tip to develop your own work ethic and that is to learn from the best. Watching the ted talks and interviews of the successful people will give you an insight into the work ethic of those people and that will help you in curating your own ethics.
Few of really commanding videos;
Watch tom ruggieri: work ethic in education
Becoming as ethical we think we are
The way we think about work is broken
Learn from seniors in your field
As a fresher, you will always find seniors who are more experienced than you, they will have various things to teach you and one of the things you could learn is work ethic. You can learn how to be more professional and how to better manage your time and budget. All of these add to your work ethic. Your colleagues, co-workers and seniors, all have their own work ethic and you can learn from them and incorporate the skills you like.
Try, fail then try again
Developing a strong set of work ethic and getting in the habit of being more punctual, disciplined and dedicated requires a lot of effort and daily perseverance. Don’t be discouraged if you are having troubles in the beginning, it’s okay to take your time in building up these essential skills. Keep putting in the effort, the rewards will soon follow up.
