Finding joy is the ability to notice, create and sustain a sense of energy, meaning and fulfilment in your leadership. It involves recognising what lifts you, aligning your actions with what matters, and cultivating moments of connection, gratitude and progress, even during pressure or change. Leaders who practise joy are more emotionally resilient, present and impactful over time.
“Joy is not the opposite of work. It is the fuel of better work.” Leslie Perlow
Why finding joy matters
Joy matters as a leadership capability, not just a personal nice-to-have, because of what it does to the mind while it’s present. A leader operating from genuine energy and warmth tends to notice more options, connect more distant ideas, and take in dissenting information more comfortably; a leader operating from flatness or dread narrows almost automatically toward threat, control, and the most familiar response. People also read a leader’s emotional state far more accurately than they read their words, so a leader who has genuinely lost access to joy tends to lead from depletion, extracting effort rather than generating it, and a team absorbs that tone whether or not it’s ever named directly.
Without it, leadership becomes a long exercise in endurance, technically sustainable for a while, but running on a kind of energy that depletes faster than it’s replaced. The absence of joy rarely announces itself as a crisis, it shows up as flatness: less humour, less generosity, less willingness to notice what’s actually going well, and a team quietly mirrors all of it back. Leaders who treat joy as a discipline rather than an accident protect something that compounds, their own resilience, and give the people around them permission to bring real energy to work rather than just endurance.
“Happiness is not a matter of intensity but of balance, order, rhythm and harmony.” Thomas Merton
What good and bad finding joy looks like
| What bad looks like | What good looks like |
|---|---|
| Waits for a big milestone or external validation before allowing themselves to feel any satisfaction in the work. | Notices and lets in small, ordinary moments of satisfaction as they happen, rather than reserving all reward for a distant finish line. |
| Treats their own depletion as a badge of commitment, and quietly signals to the team that visible exhaustion is what dedication looks like. | Models sustainable energy openly, including visibly taking a break or protecting a boundary, so the team learns that isn’t a sign of lesser commitment. |
| Keeps joy entirely private, so a team experiences a leader who is composed but emotionally unreadable, giving them nothing to mirror or feed off. | Lets genuine enthusiasm, humour, and satisfaction show visibly enough that a team can feel and mirror it, not just infer it exists. |
| Treats a string of difficult weeks as proof that joy has to wait until the current crisis passes, and defers it indefinitely. | Finds a way to access some genuine energy or lightness even inside a hard stretch, rather than treating joy and difficulty as mutually exclusive. |
| Chases only the moments that feel immediately good, novelty, praise, a fun distraction, without ever building toward anything that feels meaningful over time. | Balances momentary pleasure with a steady thread of meaning, so satisfaction doesn’t evaporate the moment the good feeling passes. |
| Measures a good week only by output delivered, with no attention to whether the way it was delivered was sustainable or draining. | Notices not just what got delivered in a week, but what it cost to deliver it, and adjusts when the cost is quietly climbing. |
| Only finds joy by looking backward at what’s already been achieved, with nothing on the horizon actively looked forward to. | Deliberately keeps something genuinely looked-forward-to on the calendar, using anticipation itself as a source of energy, not just reflection on what’s done. |
| Notices when joy has quietly disappeared from their leadership, but treats it as an unavoidable cost of the role rather than something to actively address. | Treats a prolonged absence of joy as a signal worth investigating, the way they would treat a drop in performance or engagement. |
“Joy is the simplest form of gratitude.” Karl Barth
Barriers to finding joy
Spreading negativity or cynicism: When leaders dwell on problems, complain, or focus only on what is missing, they shape the emotional climate of the team and drain their own sense of energy. Cynicism may feel honest in harsh environments, but it cuts off access to optimism, connection and resilience. Without joy, your leadership presence becomes heavy and harder to sustain.
Withholding recognition and appreciation: Leaders often assume their team knows they are doing a good job or feel too busy to pause and acknowledge others. But by not expressing appreciation regularly, you rob yourself of one of the easiest and most immediate sources of joy: seeing others thrive because of your words. Recognising others is as energising for you as it is for them.
Failing to build trust-rich cultures: If you lead in a way that is overly controlling, reactive or sceptical, you will likely create distance rather than trust. That lack of psychological safety prevents your team from relaxing into their best work, and it isolates you emotionally. Leading without trust is lonely, exhausting and joyless.
Ignoring the power of small wins: As a leader, it is easy to chase the next significant milestone and overlook daily signs of progress. But when you miss these moments, you deny yourself the chance to feel uplifted, connected and encouraged. Celebrating small wins restores momentum and joy in your leadership journey.
Failing to design predictable work rhythms: Leaders who do not set healthy boundaries or create structure in their week often feel overextended and scattered. Without predictable rhythms, it becomes hard to reflect, recharge or feel grounded. Joy has no room to grow in a constant state of urgency.
Leading by overwork instead of role modelling balance: If you push through fatigue and treat rest as optional, you reinforce the idea that leadership must be self-sacrificing. Overwork may look productive in the short term, but it erodes your sense of fulfilment and influence over time. Joyful leaders protect energy, not just output.
Leading without purpose or connection to meaning: When you lose sight of why your work matters, motivation and joy fade quickly. Purpose does not just inspire others; it sustains you. Reconnecting to meaning is one of the fastest ways to reignite joy in your leadership.
Misalignment between your time and your values: If your calendar does not reflect what matters most to you, leadership starts to feel hollow. Spending too much time on urgent but unimportant tasks leaves little space for joy, growth, or meaningful connections. Time alignment is not a luxury; it is a leadership necessity.
Blocking job crafting: If you see your role as fixed and dictated by others, you may miss the chance to shape it around your strengths and interests. Leaders who never adapt or personalise their work can feel boxed in even at senior levels. Joy increases when you craft your leadership role with intention.
Treating joy as a perk, not a practise: If you see joy as something nice to have once the real work is done, it will always remain out of reach. Leaders who actively cultivate joy, not wait for it, show up with more energy, clarity and influence. Joy is not the reward for good leadership; it is part of the path.
“Of all the things that can boost emotions, motivation, and perceptions during a workday, the single most important is making progress in meaningful work.” Teresa Amabile
Enablers of finding joy
Reconnecting with purpose: Leaders who actively revisit why their work matters find greater fulfilment, direction and emotional resilience. Purpose offers a steadying force in times of uncertainty and renews the energy needed to lead others effectively. Joy deepens when your actions feel connected to what you truly value.
Staying aligned with personal values: When your time and decisions reflect what truly matters to you, your leadership feels authentic and energising. Misalignment breeds frustration and burnout. Joy comes from leading in a way that honours who you are.
Making time for micro-joys: Even during a packed day, small intentional acts like pausing for gratitude, celebrating a win or connecting with a colleague can restore joy. These micro-moments buffer stress and remind you of what makes leadership meaningful. Leaders who make space for joy stay more grounded and human.
Designing for energy, not just output: Leaders who manage their calendar to protect thinking time, breaks and meaningful conversations find more rhythm and less exhaustion. Predictable structure creates room for reflection and renewal. Joy is hard to access in a constant state of urgency.
Acting from strengths: Joy grows when leaders design their work around what they do best. Leveraging your natural talents, interests, and energy zones increases flow, confidence and effectiveness. Strengths-aligned leadership feels less like effort and more like impact.
Building trust through openness: When you lead with authenticity and psychological safety, others respond with trust and so do you. Being open, honest and receptive reduces emotional friction and increases connection. Leading with trust reduces loneliness and increases daily joy.
Practising intentional appreciation: Expressing sincere recognition not only lifts your team but also you as a leader. Gratitude shifts attention toward what is working and reinforces emotional connection. Regularly appreciating others is one of the most reliable ways to access joy in your leadership.
Allowing lightness and humour: Leaders who give themselves permission to be light-hearted, laugh and enjoy moments with others build connection and reduce pressure. Fun is not frivolous; it is fuel for creative energy and human connection. Joy often returns when we stop forcing ourselves to be serious.
Creating space for meaningful progress: Noticing and celebrating daily wins builds motivation and momentum. When leaders track progress, big or small, they create positive emotional feedback that sustains drive and clarity. Joy grows when you feel like your efforts are making a difference.
Treating joy as a leadership priority: Leaders who see joy as central to sustainable performance, not just a side effect, are more likely to experience it. Joy is not something to chase after the work is done; it is a discipline to be cultivated within the work. The mindset shift changes everything.
“Joy doesn’t happen at the end of the journey. It shows up in the pauses, if we let it.” Peter Bregman
Self-reflection questions on finding joy
What currently brings you the most joy in your leadership role? When do you feel most alive, energised or fulfilled at work? How can you intentionally create more moments like that in your week?
Where in your leadership are you going through the motions? What part of your role feels disconnected from meaning or enjoyment? Is that something you can delegate, redesign or reframe?
Do your daily actions reflect what you value most as a leader? Where is there alignment, and where is there drift? What one small shift would bring you closer to alignment this month?
When was the last time you paused to recognise or celebrate a win? What did you learn from that moment? How can you build a regular rhythm of recognising progress, for yourself and others?
How does your current leadership rhythm affect your energy and joy? What habits help restore you, and which ones drain you? What boundary or structure would improve your week?
Are you utilising your strengths effectively in your leadership? Which tasks or challenges bring out your best thinking or flow state? Where could you adjust your role or routines to use your strengths more intentionally?
What emotions do you bring into the room when you lead? How do you think that affects others’ energy and engagement? What could you do to shift that tone toward more lightness or optimism?
How often do you permit yourself to experience joy at work? What beliefs do you hold about seriousness, productivity and leadership? What would change if you saw joy as a strength rather than a reward?
Where do you feel psychologically safe, and where do you feel guarded? What makes the difference in those contexts? What can you do to create more of that safety for yourself and your team?
If joy were a strategic priority in your leadership, what would you do differently? What habits or mindsets would you strengthen first? What impact would that shift have on the people you lead?
“The most successful people are those who discover what they are most passionate about and then find a way to offer it in service of others.” Richard Leider
Micro practices for finding joy
1. Sort today into pleasure and meaning: At the end of the day, note one thing that felt good in the moment and, separately, one thing that felt meaningful even if it wasn’t fun. Treat these as two different ingredients, since a day can be full of one and empty of the other without you noticing which is missing.
2. Ask your team what energised them this week: Once a week, ask the people you lead directly what gave them energy recently, not just what’s blocking them. This surfaces a completely different kind of information than a normal status update, and models that energy is something worth tracking.
3. Put one genuinely anticipated thing on next week’s calendar: Before the week starts, schedule something you’re actually looking forward to, not just restorative in the abstract, and let yourself notice the anticipation build as the day approaches. The looking-forward-to is often as valuable as the thing itself.
4. Say what you’re actually proud of, out loud: Once a week, tell someone specifically what you’re proud of having done, not fishing for a compliment, just named plainly. Saying it out loud does something that privately knowing it doesn’t.
5. Notice the moment you clench up: Pay attention to the specific point in a hard week where you feel yourself grip tighter, jaw, shoulders, tone, and treat that as a cue to deliberately loosen rather than push through. The physical signal usually arrives before you’d otherwise notice the joy has already left the room.
6. Find the one genuinely funny or absurd detail in your last failure: Next time something goes wrong, deliberately look for the one detail that’s actually a little funny or absurd about it, not to minimise the failure, but to keep your relationship with setbacks from turning uniformly grim. Leaders who can do this stay more resilient and more pleasant to work for during the exact stretches that test both.
“Success is not the key to happiness. Happiness is the key to success. If you love what you are doing, you will be successful.” Albert Schweitzer
Explore related leadership resources
To further develop this capability, examine how it intersects with other core leadership dimensions across the libraries:
Leadership library:
- Humour (constructive): Use lightheartedness as a tool to diffuse tension, build rapport, and maintain a positive perspective during challenging projects.
- Well-being and Human Sustainability: Transition from short-term endurance to long-term flourishing by prioritising the mental and physical health of yourself and your team.
- Work Life Balance: Create the necessary boundaries to recharge, ensuring that your professional drive does not come at the expense of personal fulfilment.
- Emotional Intelligence: Develop the self-awareness to recognise your “energy drains” and “energy gains,” allowing you to lead with more intentionality and presence.
Supporting libraries
- Optimism (Traits): Lean into your natural tendency to expect positive outcomes, using this mindset to inspire confidence and momentum in others.
- Perspective agility (Agility): Reframe setbacks as learning opportunities, maintaining a sense of progress even when the path is difficult.
- Optimism (EQ-i): Harness the emotional power of a hopeful outlook to strengthen your resilience and sustain your passion for the work.
Continue exploring: Return to the Leadership Library to view the full directory of competencies and resources.