We are in the age of “instant gratification” and, thanks to the internet, countless forms of ways to “get rich” or become a “millionaire” by doing these things.  With the addition of social media and other platforms that allow the delivery of content to you at your fingertips, it is easier than ever before to become very lackadaisical throughout your day. 

From consuming content, scrolling through social media, and even creating content for different platforms, can simply turn a “work” day into a “busy” day.  At the same time, some would describe this as being distracted, unmotivated, and even lazy.  I believe that it is the question of work ethic that is taking a hard hit right now and something that we need to address moving forward.  

Based on my google search of “the definition of work ethic”, it is defined as the principle that hard work is intrinsically virtuous or worthy of reward.  If you take the literal definition of what work ethic means, you work hard at what you’re doing and you get rewarded for that hard work.  There is no magic trick to it other than simply working hard.  

I believe that there are three important keys to having a great work ethic and if you choose to take these and implement them, you can continue to improve in your life, profession, and/or business.  

1. Have Passion For What You’re Doing

You hear this all the time.  “Do what you love and you won’t work a day in your life”.  Well of course that is true and, for the majority of people out there, they are learning to love what they’re doing because it is what pays the bills and helps them survive.  With that being said, you have to have passion for what you are doing.  

By getting up everyday because of your desire to want to be the best at what you are doing in life is going to help ensure that you are raising the level of your work ethic.  There are always things you are doing that you don’t like; however, when it comes to your job, profession, business, etc. having that burning desire to be great will help you move the needle in your life and business.

Bottom line here, it comes down to having a great attitude and carrying a positive mentality in what you are doing.

2. Continue Educating Yourself In Your Craft

Whether you are a plumber, nurse, doctor, sales person, or even a business owner, education is crucial to keeping you ahead of the competition or, in some instances, keeps you in line with the requirements of what your profession asks of you.  

By keeping yourself immersed in continuous education, it helps to raise not only your level of education but it also helps to raise your confidence in what you are doing.  It’s your willingness to keep educating yourself and doing it even when you’re not asked to, that is a reflection of the work ethic that you are putting into your profession.  

It will require a level of sacrifice in your personal life or personal time; however, it is one thing that will also breed opportunities in the future to increase your personal time and improve your personal life as well.  Not to mention, it will also grow opportunities for you to enhance your position in your own profession.

“There is no substitute for hard work.” – Thomas Edison

3. Create Profitable Organization

If you ask people what is the one thing that you can’t get back or is the most valuable thing that you have, most will tell you that it is time.  That is why I believe that if you want to improve your work ethic then you have to address your time and how that time is being spent every single day.  If you opened up your calendar online, or even looked at your calendar on your phone, what would it look like?  

Do any of you have a daily scheduler?  Do you write things down that you have to get accomplished every day?  No matter what level of importance you think that it has, by writing down what you have to do each day, or what is on your agenda of things you want to accomplish each day, can eliminate so much wasted time you give away to things that aren’t profitable for you.  

Whether it is monetarily or personally profitable, your time has to be of value to you.  By creating profitable organization you are fine tuning your work ethic and assigning every activity to your day a value.

This is so crucial to having a great work ethic because you aren’t allowing things that don’t enhance your life either professionally or personally to get in the way and take from you or those things you have assigned a value to inside each day.  What you are also doing is allowing yourself to create an audit of what a day looks like, so you can either add better things to it and you can take away those things that aren’t helping you achieve what you need to during that day.

Just take one day and fill your calendar up each hour with what you have planned to achieve that day and you will be amazed at what you really get to see what a “normal” day for you looks like.

I believe that the most successful people have a work ethic that is misunderstood because it looks and/or sounds crazy when you break it down.  From the time they wake up to the time they go to bed it is a flurry of activity that many of us just don’t “see how they have time to do all those things.” 

However, what they have is a work ethic that was, in some part, instilled in them through examples at an early age, but is one they possess now through their daily habits and routines.  At the same time, people that have terrible work ethics you can say the very same things about just in reverse.   

I believe that these three ways outlined here can help improve a work ethic you already possess and can enhance the opportunities in your life and profession that having a great work ethic will generate.