Why work should be meaningful

Published

on June 11, 2008

Let’s face it folks–we spend a LOT of time at work. Research from the Productivity Institute shows that in the last 20 years, working time has increased by 15%, while leisure time has decreased by 33%. As someone who does recruiting, interviewing and hiring for Hetrick, I am continually looking for ways to differentiate our agency, and the work experience we offer. Candidates frequently ask me to describe our “culture,” or talk about what we do for “fun.” While I certainly want our employees to have a good time at work, I do not feel the responsibility to create that fun–or worse yet–legislate fun. I do feel a responsibility to help create a meaningful experience. With 78% of American workers wishing they had more time to smell the roses, I contend that if you find meaning in the work you do, you can smell those roses right at your laptop. I also know that our personal trials and tribulations can’t help but shape how we approach our work. As I continue on my own personal journey against breast cancer, I can’t imagine going to work–putting in the time and energy it takes to run a successful business–if I couldn’t find joy and meaning in each day. What are you doing today to make your work life mean something?

6 Responses to “Why work should be meaningful”

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1 Jane
Jun 11th, 2008 at 1:57 pm

Well said Amy! As someone who has had the incredible good fortune to spend many years planting, cultivating and smelling the roses, I must say that they are sweeter with a little plain old hard work under the belt. The value of work is not defined only by one’s contribution to society but also by a myriad of personal factors. It is all about that elusive balance that we seek and it is different for each member of this wild and mostly wonderful human race.
2 Laura
Jun 11th, 2008 at 5:52 pm

Great question, Amy, and I enjoyed reading your thoughts.
Working in the healthcare field, the meaning of what I do professionally is often clear to me in profound and touching ways. I am a nurse who specializes in pediatric surgery. More specifically, I am a member of a team which performs surgeries to correct congenital heart defects. We believe that ideal care focuses on placing patients and families first, and I apply this principle with care and respect. I also carry a commitment to follow through with my parting words to parents as we walk into the OR suite with their child - “We will take care of your child.” I’ve always said this, and I’ve always meant it, but it has touched my heart and very soul on a much deeper level since having children of my own. The way I see it, I am honored to be entrusted with the care of someone else’s child, through life and, yes, through death.
Sometimes, truth be told, the very meaning of all I’ve done in my 20 years as a nurse actually slaps me in the face. Good thing I keep a sense of humor! All said and done, the knowledge that I’ve made a positive and meaningful difference in more lives than I am probably even aware leaves me to say that I’d do it all over again.
3 Martha Yoder
Jun 11th, 2008 at 6:01 pm

Wow, you hit me right between the eyes. I write for The Indianapolis Star Career Builder section and have seen in the past five year a trend by employees to not take all their vacation time accured. Even while on vacation, up to 50 percent are staying in contact via electronic devises…partly, because employees are afraid of losing their grip or edge, or fear their own job security. Through experience, I’ve found that although a rewarding career lasts a lifetime, a relationship with your family, friends and kids is eternal. Balancing the two are as tough as it gets. I pray that your personal battle is one shared with those around you, both work and home. On the subject of fun at the workplace, I don’t think employers have a job to make their work environment fun, but should hire those who work together well (in harmony). Hard work is hard work. The most rewarding jobs are ones in which I worked hard, then played hard.

Take care of yourself!
4 Ann McGriffin
Jun 12th, 2008 at 10:43 am

i have learned through many years of personal excavation that our responsibility as humans (the meaning of life?) is to find our niche in the world. for me, it is a spiriutal need, a call to provide the world with something meaningful…not for ego building, but as a contribution to this grand brief life we are given. people who see this have found the joy of life, which naturally carries over into their careers. for some it comes early through mentoring by observant adults; for others committed to ultimately unearthing this passion we dig until we find it, regardless of how long it takes.

the essence of life itself requires what we have labeled “work”. it’s the process of actions that arrive at a result that benefits the continuation of life. how we view this process makes life fun, or not. i think that many people focus on the end result, the arrival, the accolades, the fruition, and think AHA!…then i will be happy. then work will be fun. this creates soul unrest and denies them the “happiness” that the journey provides. once i realized that there is no arrival, then the journey became a lovely ride.

i grew up with a saying so full of grace and meaning told to me by my grandmother. “there is as much honor in tilling a field as in writing a poem.” it was many years before i really understood what this meant on a soulful level. now i use these words on a daily basis to remind myself that merely hanging clothes on the line to dry is an important miracle of life. it’s as meaningful as the paintings i create in my studio. this keeps the fun and joy in my daily work.
5 Steven
Jun 13th, 2008 at 9:56 am

Having worked at a few different places in my career, I’ve learned the “culture question” is really about respect. Offices with the best culture have leadership who trust the people they’ve hired to perform their duties to the best of their abilities. They understand that workplaces run better and productivity is higher when people enjoy their time there. If taking a long lunch on an especially sunny day or working from home when a child is ill helps the employee work better, they see the value in supporting them as long as the work gets done. And that’s the other component. Employees have a responsibility to live up to the responsibility. They must carry themselves in a manner deserving of the freedom they’re given. The work must get done and productivity must remain high.

Fun doesn’t have to be legislated or even encouraged. If more companies realized that simply by giving employees the freedom to do their job best, they’ll do the best job.
6 Siobhan
Jun 16th, 2008 at 10:57 am

Great blog, Amy! I enjoyed reading your thought on “legislating fun” in the workplace. I certainly have to agree with you, as well as Steven when he said “Fun doesn’t have to be legislated or even encouraged. If more companies realized that simply by giving employees the freedom to do their job best, they’ll do the best job.”

I’d like to offer my perspective as someone on the other side of the coin than you - the one who has actually asked the “culture question”. When interviewing for a potential job, the “culture question” can be extremely indicative of getting the feel for what type of work environment you may be getting yourself into.

The average American may spend 71,750 or more hours* of their life at work. That is nearly 3,000 straight days or 8 years! Now, from my perspective, there isn’t much I can do to change that (short of winning the lottery). But, what I can have an impact on is how enjoyable those 71,750 hours are. Do I enjoy what I am doing? Am I doing something that is making a difference in the world? Am I working with people that I respect and can trust? Am I having *fun*?

Ahh…now, there is that “fun” word. Let’s take a look at what I think of when I ask myself if I am having fun. I actually wholeheartedly agree that fun doesn’t need to be legislated. In fact, legislated fun can come across as trite and forced.

Can you imagine? “Everyone, it is now, 12:30. It is scheduled fun time. Please take out your yo-yos, slinkys, and hackey sacks. Please remember that fun time ends at 1:00 sharp. At that time, please return to your cube and lock away your toys until next Tuesday at 12:30.” What a boring world it would be.

Rather, the type of “fun” that would attract me to a company, is the organic fun that grows out of employees genuinely liking each other and liking what they do. I think that often, companies can be so scared of encouraging employees to enjoy themselves because they are afraid it will turn into a free-for-all circus. But, what kind of trust is that in your employees - the ones that you hired to do a job? If a company lets employees know of the expectations for quality work to be done, I can’t see why allowing them to make it an enjoyable experience along the way can do anything but boost office morale and create an environment where employees actually want to spend those 71,750 hours.

At the end of the day, of course, the true measure is not how much fun I had, but rather, did the work get done? And I would assume that if a companies leadership has given its employees the freedom to mold their work environment into a place they enjoy spending their time, companies will see higher productivity rates, lower turn over, and better teamwork.

*(8.2 hours per day (National average via Bureau of Labor Statistics) x 5 days a week x 50 weeks a year x 35 years)