CLARITY KICKSTART: April 28, 2014
“When it comes to generating the ultimate currency, how we perceive our work can matter more than the work itself. Hospital cleaners who recognize a simple truth, which is that their work makes a difference, are happier than doctors who don’t experience their work as meaningful.”
~ Tal Ben-Shahar
Coaching Tip for the Week:
What is the meaning of your work?
The above quote refers to a study by Amy Wrzesniewski & Jane Dutton. They found that hospital cleaners who viewed their work as meaningful and making a difference – knowing that they didn’t just mop floors but contributed to patients’ well-being and hospital functioning – measured higher in happiness than those cleaners who saw their work as boring and meaningless.
Not surprising, right?
But these two sets of workers did the exact same tasks for the same pay: took out garbage, washed dirty laundry, cleaned bathrooms. The only difference in the work was the meaning they gave to it.
This week, decide that your work matters. Choose to imbue it with meaning and purpose, then look for evidence to support your decision. Ask yourself – and others, if necessary – how your work makes a difference. Then, engage fully in the knowledge that what you do matters.
Because it does!
Dr. Christi Hegstad helps you successfully do what you love! As a Certified Executive and Leadership Coach and the President of MAP Professional Development Inc., she coaches executives and leaders who feel stuck – whether in their leadership abilities, at a certain income level, or “spinning their wheels” in the day-to-day – to flourish towards a purposeful vision with clarity, confidence, and meaningful action.
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