BUSYING herself unpacking makeup samples, Daw Cho Thet Nwe, a manager at New Link cosmetic distribution company, said she does not mind giving up personal time for work because she loves her job.

“I've been in this business for seven years but I never get bored with my job,” she said.

She said other staff at the company share the same feelings of job satisfaction, with many of them spending more time at work than at home.

Experts say that many factors contribute to job satisfaction, including understanding between colleagues, good management, staff empowerment, level of pay and benefits and quality of the working conditions.

Subjective feelings also come into play including the individual worker’s perception of how well the job lives up to their expectations and how well it matches their personality.

“When there is understanding among staff most problems get solved automatically. But some managers think competition is more efficient than cooperation so they undermine understanding by creating a competitive atmosphere,” Daw Cho Thet Nwe.

She said that although competition can be good thing if approached with a positive attitude, all too often staff members get caught up in trying to outperform one another to impress management instead of concentrating on their jobs.

Dr Aung Tun Thet, the deputy director of programs at the United Nations System Staff College in Turin, Italy, said happiness at work depends on the level of self-satisfaction at the job.

“And the level of self-satisfaction depends on what people are hoping to achieve at their job,” he said.

He said common measuring sticks for satisfaction include pay, work responsibilities, variety of tasks, promotional opportunities, the nature of the work itself and coworkers.

“Other influences on satisfaction include management style, employee involvement, empowerment and existence of autonomous work groups,” he said. “The happier people are at their job, the more satisfied they will be.”
Dr Aung Tun Thet said that although pay sometimes influenced job satisfaction it was often one of the least important factors.

“Many people can be satisfied at their jobs even though they don’t get paid much. Money isn’t the most important factor. People mostly need a good working environment to be happy,” he said.

He also said it was possible to cultivate job satisfaction even when moving from one workplace to another.

“People used to work at one company for many years so they would feel secure in their job but fewer young people are doing this now,” he said.

“From my point of view, it is normal for a person to change jobs at least four or five times in their career. This will help them gain experience and teach them how to blend in with different organisations,” he said.

Ko Myo Min, who was recently hired to work at an advertising company, said his experience at former jobs helped him land his new position.

“I had worked for seven years at my previous job and the new company was impressed by that. So I would say working at a few different places can help you get a better, more satisfying job,” he said.

“I don’t think people should be satisfied with what they have. It limits their ability to try new things. There is always something better out there. The opportunity to find a good job is waiting for those who dare to break out of their perceived limitations,” Ko Myo Min said.