There is no doubt about it, most people, when pressed would say that they would rather do something that interested them than bored them. But what exactly does ‘interested’ mean. I would hazard a guess that at some level it is about creating something meaningful within the context of a working day. I’m fortunate of course, as are many entrepreneurs, we are often doing the things that have meaning for us; we have even built businesses around those things too. Passion, it seems is the order of the day for us, because typically you don’t have an entrepreneur who has no passion for the business he is creating.
But what about everyone else, how is meaning at work achieved for those who aren’t so lucky to call the shots in their working life? Perhaps it’s all down to attitude. A survey that took place in 2007 but human capital (gosh I dislike that term!) company Penna showed that one in four workers believe their job plays a vital part in who they are, whilst an equivalent number of those at director level believe they get more meaning from work than from their home life and friends.
So if work defines, for may, who they are as a person, what are the factors that are involved. Once again according to Penna, it is probably down to the values that an individual holds; and I know from anecdotal evidence that it doesn’t matter what job you do, if you have the ability to match your values to what you perceive your job is providing then you will achieve a meaningful relationship with your work. In fact I once heard about a guy who loved the job he had which was to pack bags at a local supermarket. The reason he loved his job was because he knew he was making life easier for the people he was helping.
Being good at what you do also helps significantly. If you feel you can do a good job and be satisfied with the results achieved then this adds much to your levels of happiness at work.
Creating meaning at work isn’t difficult, but it does require a change in attitude and perhaps this is where mentoring can help an organisation. By working with your staff and utilising some of the possibilities that mentoring offers, you will find out what motivates them and in the process help them achieve a more meaningful relationship to the work that they do.
So here are a few suggestions about how you can create more meaning in your own work:
- take on a new challenge and step outside your comfort zone
- understand the value of the work you do and how it fits into your ‘customers’ needs
- learn a new skill
- offer to act as a mentor or buddy for a new member of staff
- ask for a mentor or buddy yourself, encourage your employer to think about bringing this into the workplace
- if you can think of a way to do something better, faster or more cheaply – say so!
