Thu, September - 9 - 2010 |
(on a truly global perspective)
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Why do we work? What we do expect from work? What do we get from work? Is the nature of work changing along with the economic and social changes affecting all of us? The topic is relevant to anyone and the perspective taken by Al Gini (member of the Department of Philosophy and the Institute of Human Resources and Industrial Relations at Loyola University Chicago) is at the same time academic and wide ranging for the general reader referencing from subjects such as psychology, history, popular literature and economics. This book stimulates the reader to reflect upon the ‘way that we make a living’ while gaining a sense of perspective and insight upon what we really value about our own work. The exercise is at the same time challenging and enlightening and it helps us also to find ways that could improve the way we experience and perceive work itself.
From necessity to self-realization: identity
First of all, why do we work? OK, the first answer is a given: ‘we work to make a living’. But there is much more than that and too often we fail to consider and value it. Gini puts it quite clearly: “Renè Descartes was wrong. It isn’t ‘Cogito ergo sum’ (I think, therefore I am), but rather ‘Labora, ergo sum’ (I work therefore, I am). We need work, and as adults we find identity in and are identified by the work we do. Our work tells us who we are. If this is true, then we must be careful about what we choose to do for a living, for what we do is what we become. At its worst, work is a burden and a necessity. At its best work can be an act of personal freedom and self-realization. But either way, work is a necessary and defining ingredient in our lives”. From both a psychological and social perspective the sense of identity that we get from work is a powerful one; it does shape who we are and the way we are perceived by others, yet most of all, the ‘rules’ of our work do have a powerful impact on the way we understand and give meaning to events shaping our lives and the lives of others.
Beyond the survival game?
Do we work to survive or can we also gain satisfaction from work aiming at that self-realization that deep inside we all strive for? Since the Industrial Revolution the progressive spreading of material well-being (at least within the Western civilization) should have enabled workers to go beyond the threshold of ‘work as survival’ into a dimension of work more linked to real achievement, expression of talent and inner potential. Gini writes “Unfortunately, both conventional wisdom and sociological surveys tell us that a significant portion of the workforce feels trapped in jobs that lack the possibility of ‘real achievement’, ‘feelings of satisfaction’ and the opportunity for the development of a ‘healthy and stable sense of self’. For these individuals work remains an obstacle to endure instead of an opportunity to expend one’s life. Clearly, the only satisfaction to be found in some jobs lies in the necessity of getting it done when no other alternatives are available. Survival, not satisfaction, becomes the goal. (...) More and more workers feel that their jobs lack any meaning and value beyond the utilitarian function of providing them with a paycheck.” Since ancient times work has been associated with a burden, a necessary unavoidable toil (on the topic Gini points out several references from ancient Greek and Roman cultural tradition and also the Bible); with time, no matter what kind of material improvements society has created overall, we have been unable to tap into the richer inner individual dimension of work and this has created serious individual and social consequences “Too many workers believe their jobs have nothing to do with their inner sense of self, at least not in a positive sense. Too often, they’re right. Too often, frustration at work finds expression in addiction, depression, withdrawal or violence”.
Safety of the body; what about safety of the mind?
Since the Industrial Revolution there is been a lot of progress within the workplace of factories and offices in terms of physical work conditions. Physically healthier and safer work environments have progressively become widespread at least within the Western world. Yet this does not seem to have proportionally contributed to increase the overall positive perception of work. As Gini puts it “Although the modern workplace goes to great lengths to protect workers’ bodies, little or no attention is paid to the potential damage to their psyches and spirits”. The key issue here is once again associated with the sense of meaning, the sense of vision that we stimulated to associate to our work and too often this stimulation is too little or totally not present within organizations and work environments. Gini labels this issue as ‘lack of vision’; first of all lack of vision on the side of organizational leadership whom fails either to develop, articulate or communicate effectively a sense of project, of contribution to a larger goal, to which workers at any level of the organization can relate to. Once again the consequences of this are widespread and have a deep impact on an individual and societal level “Because so few of us feel we are part of a larger purpose, we lose ourselves in the pay-off, the paycheck, and are driven solely by the goal of pecuniary well-being. The primary meaning of our labor is reduced to what it allows us to get or buy. We no longer work to create or contribute but only to consume”. Human nature leads us to strive for meaning, to strive for achievement and since we cannot find neither meaning nor achievement within the daily nature of our work, we associate meaning and achievement not to what we create but to what we consume. Gini argues that this affects also the sources of our motivation to work and produce “The desire for goods and services, aided and abetted by advertisement and the installment plan, is the ‘new candided carrot’, to use Bell’s phrase, that keeps us at our jobs and motivates our work efforts. The new American worker has been formed not by discipline, ideology, or need by by boredom, want and desire”. Once again these dynamics might contribute to ensure safety and well-being of the body, the latest and trendiest goods and services do satisfy - at least for a given amount of time - our external needs and wants; yet our internal drives for real contribution and achievement are too often pushed aside with the undesirable consequences above mentioned. Today’s way to work takes care of our body and little of our mind; over two hundred years of growing material progress has done very little to change this.
Tapping into the inner dimension of work: values and moral leadership
Failing to take into consideration and develop the individual inner dimension of work is detrimental of the individual; nowadays it is detrimental also for organizations that have the necessity to tap into the inner individual creativity and talents in order to innovate and be competitive within a very dynamic and demanding global economy. Work with a real meaning, clearly part of a real contribution to a greater purpose is for more and more organizations no longer simply an unnecessary benefit granted to workers, it has become a requirement of effective management and leadership. Yet too often companies still fail to understand this and they miss the opportunity to truly evolve the dimension of work on both an individual and organizational level. Work has always been in search of meaning and increasingly organizations are in search of meaning in order to establish a strong sense of identity and purpose necessary to make their contribution to a fast changing economy truly recognized as unique and valuable. Meaning needs to be rooted in a real greater purpose to which we aim, as individuals and workers, on the basis of shared values and behaviors that need to be stated, articulated and respected. Meaning given by a set of principles that not only give a real greater purpose to work, they define its moral dignity. Within these dynamics leadership has a key role in coming to redefine and reshape the way we perceive and experience work. Gini writes “I believe that Tom Peters and Bob Waterman were correct when they stated ‘The real role of leadership is to manage the values of an organization’. All leadership is value-laden. All leadership is ideologically driven or motivated a by certain philosophical perspective, which upon analysis may prove to be morally acceptable. (...) Leadership is hard to define, and moral leadership is even harder. Nevertheless, I am convinced that without the ‘witness’ of moral leadership, standards of ethics and organizational life will not occur or be sustained. Leadership, even when defined as a collaborative experience, is this about the influence of individual character and the impact on personal mentoring. Good behavior does not always beget good behavior, but it does establish tone and offer options. Although it is mandatory that an organization as a whole make a commitment to ethical behavior to actually achieve it, the model for that commitment has to originate from the top. Or, am I wrong? Is it always about the money?” Once again, what is going to prevail about work? Its superficial material focus, based upon the outer dimension or the deep rooted meaning-laden real-contribution-driven based on the inner dimension?
Global societal, technological and economic changes give us the opportunity (an opportunity increasingly shaping itself as a necessity) and the means to finally have an impact upon the nature of work, the way that we identify with it, they way that we consider it not simply as a mean to survival but as a mean to self-realization. Time will tell if us and our leaders have the vision and the courage to embrace this opportunity.
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