The Power of a Joyful Worker

This past weekend, Michelle and I took a quick trip for our date weekend. That meant time in airports, and lately, airports haven’t exactly been known for joy. The ongoing shutdown had things running short-staffed, and delays were almost a guarantee. As a wise friend of mine Jack Bray used to say, “Let’s just be glad we don’t get all the government we pay for.” But if I’m being honest, I think most people in that terminal would have settled for just a little more government than they were getting that day.

We’d already been delayed, and you could feel the mood souring at the gate. Adding to the frustration, the Dunkin Donuts adjacent to our gate was based on a self-ordering platform, but they were out of so much stuff that we had to walk up to the counter before paying to see if they had what was needed to complete our order. (Those workers were doing the best they could with a good attitude.) People were tired, frustrated, and ready to take it out on whoever was unlucky enough to cross their path next. Then we boarded our Delta Air Lines flight and everything changed.

We were in the main cabin for this flight and as we came to our exit row seats, we met Danesia, one of our flight attendants. She greeted us with a big smile and immediately complimented Michelle’s Spanx outfit. Before I knew it, the two of them were in conversation about how comfortable it was. Then Brian, the other attendant, looked at me and said, “What’s that sound like to you?” I replied, “More money being spent on “formal” pajamas.” He laughed and said, “You get it.”

They made banter with nearly all who passed and their laughter and joy were contagious. Their energy shifted the tone of the entire flight. Where there had been grumbling, there was now gratitude. Instead of complaints, there were smiles. You could feel people relax.

When Brian came by for the drink service, I ordered my usual Coke Zero and Biscoff cookies. I mentioned that I loved those cookies, and we started brainstorming ways Delta could make the Biscoff experience even better — like a banana pudding using Biscoff cookies instead of vanilla wafers, or a white cake with vanilla frosting and crushed Biscoff on top. We might have gotten a little carried away, but that’s the thing about joy, it pulls you in. It makes you want to join it.

Joyful workers change the atmosphere. They take what could be stressful, chaotic, or unpleasant, and turn it into something memorable. They remind us that even when we can’t control the circumstances, we can control how we show up inside them.

Those two flight attendants didn’t fix the shutdown or the delays. They didn’t have any authority over the schedule or the system. What they did have was the ability to brighten the room they were in, and that made all the difference.

It made me think about what it looks like to carry that same mindset into our own work. You don’t have to love every part of your job to do it with joy. You just have to choose to bring a spirit that lifts others rather than weighs them down.

Joy is one of the most underrated forms of leadership. It’s not loud. It’s not about position or power. But it’s magnetic. It’s a quiet strength that changes attitudes, tempers frustration, and makes it easy for  people to engage differently.

The real truth is, people who attack work, school, or life with joy make a bigger impact than they’ll ever realize. Their influence rings out long after they leave the room. Joyful people lift the temperature of an environment in the best way… they warm it. They make people believe things can get better, and often they’re the spark that helps others find their footing again. Think about the teachers who made school enjoyable, the employee who always greets you by name, or the neighbor who waves from across the street. They might not know it, but they’re building a kind of legacy that numbers and metrics can’t measure. Joy is not noise; it’s resonance. And it leaves a mark.

That Leads Me to This Week’s Challenge… Whatever your work looks like - in an office, at home, on a farm, or 35,000 feet in the air… bring joy to it. Smile first. Encourage someone. Lighten a mood. You never know whose day you might change just by choosing to be positive when everyone else is tired of trying.

And if you ever happen to meet a joyful worker like Danesia or Brian, tell them you notice. Gratitude fuels joy, and joy makes work feel a lot less like work.

I’m thankful you took the time to read this, for choosing to work, and for being part of what makes this world amazing.