Introduction:

Consider that, when a workday ends, you might leave feeling exhausted, miserable, upset, hungry, as if you missed out on something elsewhere, or in some other negative mood. Put simply, sometimes the end of a workday can be a great relief because you would rather be anywhere but at work at that point. You might even regret the time you spent there, considering it a waste of time. Transformational leaders have the ability to improve a workplace in such a way that work becomes a more pleasant, maybe even enjoyable experience.

Positive psychology and well$-$being philosophies are being integrated into workplace management designs to try to reduce these abject feelings. For instance, the WELL Building Standard $($an alternative to the more common LEED standard$)$ tries to improve even the design of the building itself $($in which you work$)$ to alleviate negative, unhealthy impacts on you, while maybe even lightening your mood. The ideal that these designers try to obtain is to transform the work experience such that you leave the building healthier than you went into it$.$ What if merely sitting at your desk in a school $($even when not learning$),$ sitting in your office at work $($even when not completing a task$),$ or walking through a shopping center $($without even buying anything$)$ made you better, through its design?

As they have come to learn, there are systematic ways of designing the built environment to increase positive effects on the individuals within a space. Examples include natural lighting, keeping plant$-$life in view in all areas, sound and odor control $($sometimes augmented with music or aromas$),$ and other mood enhancers. In these ways, the buildings are not merely $$less bad$($toxic$-$free building materials, no off$-$gassing, etc.$)$; they are good for you, perhaps even improving your health without any action required on your part besides being there. Organizations appreciate these designs because the improved moods also tend to make workers more productive. As these design features become more common, they can replace conventional building standards with new, enhanced elements that bring out your best.

Some people are known to say that work is enjoyable for them because: it$$s not work to them; it$$s just what they love to do$.$ It is easier to incite this reaction from people when an organization is well$-$led and has the proper tools available to it$.$ Transformational leaders can sometimes get this reaction from folks even when they don$$t have all the resources they need and even when times are tough. Learning the sorts of inputs that spawn those feelings can help to promote them and augments a leader$$s abilities to bring out the best in their team. This activity corresponds to Learning Outcome $5$ because it explicitly seeks an organizational change, but it implicitly relates to putting leadership into practice in Learning Outcomes $1$ and to managing relationships with others in Learning Outcome $4.$

Initial Post:

Think back on what you have learned throughout the class regarding such things as your leadership style and other leadership approaches, techniques to manage conflict, and ways to promote transformation. Please cite $($at least$)$ one source that supports your learning. Consider that we are approaching the end of the term, which is akin to ending our workday. Identify which factors of a workday are the most difficult to experience for you, and explain how you can change those lowlights of the workday to instead become the motivating reason why you happily come to work. For example, the simple shift from saying "I have to do this" to "I get to do this" can foster gratitude and a more positive outlook. Perhaps these changes can become something that gets promoted by your organization when it posts job openings to attract an enthused influx of top candidates.