Robert Schooling
We like to ask “deep” questions at Reservoir. So it’s appropriate that one of our first posts asks what may be one of the most important questions for employees and employers. After all, we each spend the majority of our waking lives sitting (or standing in my case) at our desk. What does it all mean?
In his classic work, Man’s Search for Meaning, Victor Frankl wrote:
One should not search for an abstract meaning of life. Everyone has his own specific vocation or mission in life to carry out, a concrete assignment which demands fulfillment. Therein he cannot be replaced, nor can his life be repeated. Thus, everyone’s task is as unique as his specific opportunity to implement it.
For many, meaning in life is derived through our religious faith. For others, meaning is derived from service to others, loyalty to friends and family, creative expression, or dedication to craft.
One of the very few things in life that we can know with absolutely certainty about every person on the planet is that they are interested—consciously or unconsciously—in finding meaning in their life.
Many people wonder whether or not they can find meaning in their work and what constitutes meaning? Money, status, intellectual fulfillment, challenge? Do you live to work or work to live?
For some people the meaning in their work is obvious. I suspect many of us look admiringly on those whose work is so clearly a labor of love—the pediatric oncologist, the nuns working with the poorest of the poor, the crusading community activist, etc. However, the content of one’s work is no guarantee of finding meaning.
Those engaged fully with their work, where their work becomes an extension of their values, are more likely to find meaning. While it is perhaps more likely that those engaged in obviously noble professions are more likely to feel this sense of integration and oneness with their work, it is not guaranteed; nor is that opportunity for integration confined to a limited number of careers.
Interestingly, one predictor of integration with work is the degree to which one “identifies” with one’s work. A 2012 study from the UK found that the biggest single predictor of organizational identification was employees being treated with politeness, dignity, and respect.
Another recent study out of the University of Wisconsin found that those who help others at work are happier.
So—does your work make you happy? It seems like the answer is “it depends”—but that many of those factors depend on your attitude toward work and your colleagues and the treatment you receive from your employer.