Good Morning Faithful Readers!
Until Aug 15, I am planning to share with you my summaries of ten chapters from Tom Rath’s book, Are You Fully Charged? (AYFC). I began this series on July 30 with the book’s Prologue. Never before have I committed nearly a dozen posts to one author in succession. I am also asking you to join me praying for our future posts beyond Aug 15 to avoid wasting everyone’s valuable spiritual time and energy. Email me your suggestions in all dimensions, criticisms, praise, etc.
For those of you desiring more “meaningfulness” from Tom, email me & I’ll send you a Word doc. of the ten chapters I’ve summarized thus far, or better yet, go to thriftbooks (earlier they had 8 copies @$6.19 ea.) so order your own copy(s). Who else do you know who could benefit from Tom’s journey to find meaningfulness in their work, & especially, retirement? And I also trust, you’ll encourage others to subscribe to the blog and thereby increase our efficiency.
The work you do each day is how you make a difference in the world. You likely spend the majority of your time doing something that is considered a job, occupation, or calling. It is essential to make this time count. If you can find the right work, you can create meaning every day, instead of trying to squeeze the most important things in around the edges. Work should be more than a necessary means to an end. Yet one dictionary lists “work” as synonymous with “drudgery” and servitude.”
REALITY CHECK: When I ask persons about their career expectations, one of the most frequent replies I hear is, “You don’t live to work; you work to live.” The assumption built into this belief is that people work primarily for a paycheck in a job devoid of any meaning. (ouch!)
Work for More Than a Living
The concept of bringing people together in groups, tribes, or organizations is based on the fundamental premise that human beings can do more collectively than they can in isolation. Hundreds of years ago, people banded together for the sake of sharing food and shelter and keeping their family safe. However, when Gallup recently asked workers across the US whether their lives were better off because of the organization they worked for, a mere 12 percent claimed that their lives were significantly better. The vast majority of employees felt their company was a detriment to their overall health and well-being. (OUCH #2)
This needs to change. Employers are now quite savvy about whether you are engaged or not while you are on the job. They know what they are getting out of you likely better than you know how, or even if, your life is improving, because you are part of that organization. The reality of “What’s good for an employee is in the organization’s best interest as well” is proven by A Towers Watson analysis of 50 global companies being scored on traditional engagement measures. Those with the lowest scores averaged a 10 percent operating margin. This went up to 14 percent among companies with high employee engagement scores. However, in organizations with “sustainable engagement” meaning the organization also improved employees’ personal well-being, the average operating margin was greater than 27 percent. (Really good to know!)
A healthy relationship between an employee and an organization starts with a shared mission, meaning, or purpose. A 2013 study of more than 12,000 workers worldwide found that employees who derive meaning and understand the importance of their work are more than three times as likely to stay with an organization. Author Tony Schwartz described how this one element has “the highest single impact of any variable” in a study that looked at many elements of a great workplace. Meaningful work was also associated with 1.7 times higher levels of overall job satisfaction.
BOTTOM LINE:
The future of work lies in redefining it as doing something that makes a difference each day. Work is a purpose, not a place. Work is about productively applying your talent, about making your life, and the lives of other people, stronger as a product of your efforts.
NEXT UP:
But getting to this point starts by moving beyond the pull of a paycheck.