Workin’ It
Why do we work? Well, most of us wouldn’t work if we didn’t get paid. But then again, money can’t be the only reason why we work. We also want to feel valued, to feel like what we do means something.
Work wasn’t always like this. Before the Industrial Revolution, people didn’t have to think about whether or not their work was fulfilling — they were too busy tending to their farms and honing their crafts to create tangible results that helped them survive and proved their meaning every day. In fact, some say the only reason why people want to find meaning in their careers so badly today is because the Industrial Revolution’s soulless factories and monotonous assembly lines did such a good job of taking that meaning away.
So how do we find fulfillment in work? Research suggests that enjoying your work is about context. What kind of job you have is actually less important than how you think about that job. It turns out that everyone can find meaning and value in the work they do, independent of what that work is.
