The word ‘love’ isn’t often synonymous with work, but passion and engagement are. There are always going to be aspects of work that feel tiresome, boring and difficult to wade through. When you love what you do, your brain releases chemicals that make you feel safe, open to innovation and collaboration, and these are all things we want at work.

Historically, school, university and work environments have been quite ‘loveless’ because of standardised testing and state-wide curriculums. Employers preach diversity of thought, but often design work that puts people in a box, or push against new ways of working.

Business leaders are worried about losing control when people work from home, but the reality is that people can be productive without dragging people into the office. While employees were just as productive when working from home, they were perhaps more contemplative than before. This has fuelled changes to the practical and holistic sides of work.

Some companies are trying to revert to a command-and-control style of leadership, while others are building talent brands around the uniqueness of an individual. If work is too transactional, people feel like resources and don’t want to spend 40-50 hours a week doing something that is inherently transactional.

To do great work, you need to work in an effective team and contribute your own uniqueness via discovering how to achieve ‘flow’. Its is about fundamentally understanding the people you work with. It’s about contemplating the amalgamation of our behaviours, personalities and tendencies, and the ways these form our identities. While managers should assist people in the discovery of their flow tasks, they shouldn’t determine them on behalf of others. If you design someone’s entire role around their flow, you might inadvertently send them to the door.

I suggest asking people questions to find out what they love about work and when they feel their best. These questions will have a direct impact on people’s productivity.