Happy? Take “Psychological Ownership” of Your Job

We spend over a third of our lives at work, yet the global workplace is often not a happy place. The solution may lie with our feelings of attachment.

There’s a lot riding on engaging emotionally with our jobs. Studies show that when organizations increase the number of engaged employees, they improve a whole host of outcomes including profitability, wellbeing, productivity, and customer loyalty.

Yet, despite 70% of employees saying their sense of purpose comes from work, only 23% of us are engaged in our work, over 40% report experiencing “a lot of stress”, and low engagement costs the global economy 9% of global GDP.

We need a rethink.

We know that when managers are engaged, employees are more likely to be engaged too, but with so much at stake personally and organizationally, what can individuals do to move the dial on their own emotional attachment to their jobs? 

This is where “psychological ownership” comes in — our ability to feel our job belongs to us and that we are psychologically tied to it. The more we can feel this psychological ownership, the more likely we are to be engaged.

And there are four key steps we can take to build this psychological attachment:

#1 Taking back control

Do you have a say over your work? Can you decide how to achieve your goals and deadlines? Do you have the skills, resources, and support you need to do your job well? If you answered no to any of these questions, you might be missing out on control, one of the benefits of psychological ownership. Control helps us feel ownership of our work and that it matters to us, boosting our motivation, engagement, and performance. The more control we have, the more ownership we feel.

To increase control over our work, it is essential for leaders to clarify the purpose and goals of our work but let us choose the best way to achieve them. This way, we can align our work with the organizational vision, but also have the freedom and flexibility to do it our way. Additionally, seeking feedback and guidance from our leaders and colleagues is crucial, but don’t wait for them to tell us what to do. Be proactive and take the initiative to solve problems and improve our work processes. 

Building our skills and expertise in our area of work and sharing our knowledge and insights with others further strengthens our control and demonstrates our competence and confidence. It is important to remember to be accessible, approachable, and available for our colleagues and leaders, and ask them to do the same for us. This way, we can foster a culture of trust and collaboration, and have the support and resources we need to do our work well. 

#2 Feeling safe

Have you ever felt afraid to speak up, share your ideas, or show your true self at work? If so, you might have experienced a lack of psychological safety, which is the feeling of being accepted and respected for who you are and what you contribute. Psychological safety is crucial for our well-being and performance, as it allows us to be authentic, creative, and collaborative. 

To create and maintain psychological safety in our work environments, especially when we face challenges, conflicts, or changes, we should focus on a few key areas. First, fostering a willingness to help among team members is essential, as teams become unsafe when people are not able to help each other or feel unappreciated by fellow members. This is supported by creating a positive attitude towards risk and failure, as teams that hold mistakes against each other risk a lack of control and forward momentum.

Another important area is our sense of inclusion and attitude to diversity — when team members feel included, they are more inclined to speak up, contribute, and add to the group. We can seek out like-minded people within our immediate teams, and within other departments, functions, special interest groups, and by joining mentoring programs. Underpinning it all is our ability to have an open conversation — a team that has open and candid conversations can tackle hard problems to find effective solutions.

#3 Building intimacy

Intimacy is not a word we often associate with work, but it is a key ingredient for creating a positive and fulfilling work environment. Intimacy leads to stronger bonds and a sense of belonging with our co-workers, increasing our confidence, creativity, and collaboration, and helping us deal with conflicts, challenges, and feedback more effectively. To develop intimacy with our colleagues, we need to create opportunities for meaningful communication and interaction. 

Start by scheduling regular one-to-one meetings and informal catch-ups to check in on each other’s well-being, goals, and challenges.  Start these meetings with a check-in question that invites everyone to share how they are feeling, what they are excited or worried about, or what they are grateful for. Remember to listen actively and empathetically to colleagues and ask open-ended questions to show interest and understanding. Arranging social events and activities that are fun and promote getting to know each other outside of work can also be impactful, as they give co-workers opportunities to share feelings, opinions, and stories.

Intimacy also enhances our engagement and satisfaction with our work through having a deep knowledge and appreciation of our role, its purpose, and its impact. A growth mindset and desire to learn and improve — along with the will to seek out information and feedback — will help us perform better. 

#4 Investing ourselves

A key factor that influences how much we feel a sense of ownership over our jobs is how much we invest ourselves personally. This investment can take different forms, such as time, skills, and ideas. The more we commit to a role or project, the more we will feel connected to it and motivated by it. Of course, most of us already spend a lot of time working, but that’s not enough. We also need to have some control over how we do our jobs, what resources we use, and who we collaborate with. This will increase our interest and involvement in our roles, as well as our autonomy and creativity. 

Another aspect of personal investment is building relationships with our colleagues. The more we share our thoughts and opinions, the more we will feel a sense of belonging and safety. We will also learn from each other and appreciate each other’s perspectives and expertise. Finally, co-creation is a powerful way to invest ourselves and others in our work. By inviting input and participation from diverse sources, we can achieve better outcomes that reflect the collective wisdom and skills of the group. This will also reinforce our engagement and satisfaction with our roles, creating a positive feedback loop of psychological ownership. 

Both personally and organizationally, we need to reconnect with our feelings at work if we want more engagement with our jobs and all the associated benefits. We can do this through developing feelings of psychological ownership by taking back control, feeling safe, building intimacy, and investing in our jobs. It’s clear that now, more than ever, it’s time to get emotional.

Written by:  Sara Daw, Group CEO of The CFO Centre and The Liberti Group, and the author of Strategy and Leadership as Service – How the Access Economy Meets the C-Suite, for Big Think Blog.