I think we can all agree that regardless of whether you work full or part-time, there are many times during our career where our motivation levels can be less than fantastic. When you work part-time, a smaller proportion of your life is spent at work, it can be argued very successfully that one’s motivation can be difficult to sustain.

In order to be able to remedy any lack in motivation, it is important to realise some key concerns in the commercial environment in which we all work. For many people, motivation for work is derived from people around them, especially their manager. This is a scary prospect for part-timers whose manager is less than capable of managing a diverse team.

For many of us working part-time, we rely on a manager that will appropriately measure, communicate, recognise and reward part-time workers. This lack of managerial capability is not so much about an unwillingness to embrace alternative work arrangements, but more about an absence of tools in their managerial tool box that can be called upon.

Knowledge is power, and in my experience, managers have a thirst for knowledge in this area.

Although it is important to recognise the role managers play in our motivation levels, it is your career, so ask yourself, are you driving or expecting to be chauffeured along your career path? If you are being chauffeured, it is time to take back the controls as inevitably one day you will raise your head above your partition and find yourself miles from your original destination.

Every individual needs a career plan. That’s not to say that every individual should plan to take over the world, but rather have a plan that is right for them, with all the diversity they embody. It may be as ambitious or conservative as you see fit. Nonetheless, a plan is required. Regardless of your final destination, you can guarantee that you will feel more motivated towards work if you are following some sort of career plan.

When establishing your own individual career plan there are some elements you must consider which will play a large role in raising your motivation levels:

• Your career plan must mirror the level of commitment you are willing to give your workplace. There is nothing more de-motivating than verbally committing to something that your heart is not into. Recognise that your commitment levels may change as things change in the rest of your life. Perhaps set a date with yourself every few months to reflect on whether your career plan is still relevant to your commitment level.
  
• Your career plan should include strategies to ensure that you remain engaged in the workplace. When you work part-time it is understandable that you may need to fit a lot of work into a more limited time frame. Unfortunately for a lot of part-timers, this limits their ability to engage with colleagues and decreases their perception within the workplace and hence can make work less enjoyable. As a part-timer, it is important to be efficient, so think of time smart ways to remain engaged with your team and the broader workplace.
  
  Some of these may include:
  a. Develop a communication strategy with your team and manager that addresses how accessible you are willing to be on your days in, and out , of the office.
  
  b. Make a point of having “water cooler” conversations. I am not encouraging you to waste time on gossiping, but rather to realise the value of remembering the things that matter to your colleagues and in turn letting them know a bit about you. You can do this very effectively in short conversations during break times. Every interaction you have with another person can either increase or decrease your credibility with that person and if colleagues have a negative perception of you will not be doing yourself any favours in the motivation stakes.
  
  c. Think of team building activities that are for appropriate for you. In some instances, Friday afternoon drinks (when you don’t work Fridays, for example) is a team building activity you may not be able to participate in. Instead of letting that get you down, approach your manager with some other suggestions that you think would be better options for everyone in the team.

• Have clearly defined KPIs and measures of your success. Unfortunately, when a lot of individuals negotiate part-time work, they neglect to do it thoroughly. It is imperative that you have an understanding of what is expected from you and how your success will be measured. In that sense, if you negotiate to work part-time, you must put equal effort into negotiating you KPIs and the results you can realistically deliver in your new time frames. It is easier to stay motivated when you know if you are being successful. Likewise, it is very de-motivating when we are always chasing our tail trying to meet deadlines that are unrealistic.
  
• Cross skill. By cross skill, I don’t mean in the traditional sense of learning other people’s roles, but bring the skills that you gain outside of work into the workplace. When you work part-time, you generally have other things going on outside of work. Ask yourself what transferable skills you may be learning that you can use to increase your effectiveness at work. For example you may learn prioritising, organisational and conflict management skills as a parent, and may learn team building & communication skills by being involved in a sporting team. Appreciate that both work & life provide you with skills to be more effective in the many roles we hold in our lives. Recognition of this interdependence will minimise any conflict you feel between home and work life.
  
• Find yourself a Mentor. A Mentor is an individual to support you personally in your career. Ideally your Mentor will also work part-time and will be able to provide you with information and advice around what has and hasn’t worked for them. You and your Mentor may or may not have the same employer, but must be what you define as a successful part-time worker. Your Mentor is someone you can trust to listen to your concerns and offer their opinion or advice in a confidential & non-judgemental manner.

Importantly, working part-time does not necessarily mean that your career, and therefore your motivation levels, need to be on the decline. If you are feeling de-motivated, take back the controls and start driving your career again. Starting with the strategies outlined here, find a way to make work & life a happy interdependent relationship and enjoy the journey, regardless of your final destination.