Love your job – the new rules for career happiness

‘Dad, we’ve got some competition!’ said my daughter when she saw me reading this book. Her uncle Chris’s most recent book is called Free! Love Your Work Love Your Life and both books have the same premise. If you love your job you will be happier in your life and more successful at work.

There are a number of common themes in the two books but Love Your Work is a very different read to Free! If you like a rational, step-by-step approach, then this book will be to your taste.

It provides a great deal of actionable steps to take to enjoy work more. There is a good deal of useful data and interesting anecdotes.

The book is very well written but does inevitably come from a US perspective. This sometimes makes it feel somewhat distant, but it does have some golden nuggets. It is especially relevant for those of us in the latter half of our career, with helpful ideas about how to get on with a younger boss and how to change career paths. I particularly enjoyed the chapter ‘Beyond the Job Description’ which shows that in stretching yourself beyond your job description you learn, grow and gain energy.

The book will give you plenty of ideas to approach a multitude of situations. You may not agree with, or feel comfortable about, all the recommendations, but I found that even then I was provoked into thinking about the dynamics at play and work.

If you find yourself frustrated in your job for whatever reason, or have a friend in need of help with theirs, then there will likely be something here to help. You can easily skip over the US specific ideas and apply the thinking to your own location.

This book suggests things you can do in a practical ‘how to’ guide. So rather than being competiion I think it complementary to Free! because it looks through the lens of the work context rather than the lens of personal state.

Love Your Job: The New Rules for Career Happiness by Kerry Hannon is published by Wiley, £13.99 

Join our Book Club. If you're a member of The Marketing Society we'd love you to write a 300-word review for our Clubhouse. Or if you're an author get in touch. We've got lots of members keen to review your book. Contact Michael Piggott to find out more.