The Work-Meaning Connection Essay examples

If economical factors such as money was no problem, everyone would wish to pursue their dreams and desires. I would either wish to indulge in a life of simply existing contently, or pursue my fervent, egotistical, and narcissistic wish to rule the world. But such are merely fanciful fantasies, and the responsibilities, limitations, and desires of reality, such as skill, income, and influence from internal and external factors such as family, determines our choice between income, emotional satisfaction, and skill compatibility. Simply put, based on our skill set, and our interests, we try to choose a profession that allows us to goals of whatever degree or term, depending on our aptitude and attitude for and toward work. The profession we choose is also often a product of influence from our romantic fantasies, the demands of society, and the suggestion and information available in our surrounding environment, such as teachers and counsellors. And often, our professional dreams, and goals, may or may not differ from our personal dreams and goals, and our profession, at least for me, is the means to the ends of my

Happiness on the job is closely related to contentment of values. In fact, happiness could just be

In the United States, Americans are facing this ongoing battle of finding a job for personal fulfillment versus disutility. Ideally, workers try to get a job for personal fulfillment because it satisfies workers needs for achievements. In other words, workers live to work.  They enjoy what they do. However, that is not always the case, many times workers find themselves working a disutility job. In simpler terms, they do a job because they have to provide for themselves and their family. According to NY Daily News “A newly released Gallup report shows that 70% of Americans polled either hate their job or are "disengaged" from their work, and even perks don't work if they're unhappy with management”.  That is more than half of Americans who spend over 40 hours of their life a week unhappy. Not to mention, they can bring that unhappy attitude home. Even though many workers try and find a job for personal fulfillment sometimes, we are stuck with a job we are not satisfied with.

Money can’t be the determining factor for happiness (Kinicki & Williams, 2016). Therefore, what is meaningful determines what true happiness is. I came to that conclusion, having worked for state government over twenty years. Resigning in 2003, I decided to return in 2010. The department manager told me at the interview how overqualified I was, but they needed me. He stated, “I am sure you understand that you’re not going to become rich by working for the state”. “Yes, I am aware, I replied. For me, it is about learning and serving others.” Genuine accomplishment is identifying our tangible, distinct significances and, to the best of our abilities, being aware of them now so that we don’t wait on a fairytale to manifest later (Clark, 2014 p9).

There comes a time in life where individuals have to leave school to join the world of work whereby they will work their way up to the top. This is where career development comes into place. Career development is defined as progress through various stages in a career (Schreuder & Coetzee,2011). These are stages one goes through in order to mature in a career and for development to even exist, one has to start with making a career choice then developing it .A career choice can be defined as the relation between people’s personality types and their different occupational environment in which they work in.

A brief background overview on a few career development theories will help direct this literature review and give a foundation to current theories in career development. Career development is a complex, lifelong process that is influenced by a variety of factors. Niles and Harris-Bowlsbey (2005) defined career development as “the lifelong psychological and behavioral processes as well as contextual influences shaping one’s career over the life span” (p. 12). Although there are many career development theories, this literature review will focus on just a few. Donald Super’s Life-Span, Life-Space Career Theory highlights the “complex and multifaceted nature of career development” (Niles & Hutchinson, 2009, p. 69). Super’s theory builds upon 14 assumptions and supports three key aspects of career development: life-span, life-space, and self-concept (Niles & Hutchinson, 2009). Life-span focuses on the development over one’s life through growth, exploration, establishment, maintenance, and

In this study, job satisfaction will be operationalized using selected items from the 18-item Index of Job Satisfaction (IJS) developed by Brayfield & Rothe (1951). A 5-point Likert scale will be used to measure the outcomes ranging from the lowest indication of job satisfaction as 1 (strongly disagree) to the highest indication of job satisfaction 5 (strongly agree). This will

One’s work is viewed as a positive, fruitful contribution. While one’s occupation consumes one’s life, it is an inherently valuable investment. How did this paradigm shift from viewing work as estranged labor (in modernity) to a meaningful endeavor (in postmodernity) arise? Which social classes feel estranged from their labor? What is the broader relevance of labor and how it shapes how we view our identity and humanity? One could argue that human agency is a paradigm that shapes how people view how meaningful their work is. How do we shape our work and how does it mold us? Does our work align with our values and goals for ourselves? In the 21st century, work is often seen as a source of pride. Americans derive a sense of satisfaction from their occupations because they are often granted the agency to start their own businesses; to that end, entrepreneurial enterprises are the staple of American innovation. Creative endeavors are valued as well. On the contrary, labor in modernity served as a source of alienation. “The worker therefore only feels himself outside himself. He is at home when he is not working, and when he is working he is not at home” (74). This idea contradicts the “9-5 job” narrative shapes the American business paradigm. Today, the unemployed are ostracized for their lack of work. And yet, they do not willing subscribe to this stereotype. Unemployed Americans

Workers who are not achieving job satisfaction put in their time without any passion or energy. Employees who are not satisfied in their jobs tends to undermine the accomplishments of their co-workers. Some individuals may develop meaning from the opportunities they are afforded because of the job, and not from the job itself. Others may find the job as a means of advancing themselves and thereby becoming the best possible them. Individuals who indulge in craftsmanship may take pride in having executed a thoroughly complete job. While those in the service industry may find purpose in the thought or belief structure up on which their work is built. Others may derive meaning from the sense of affiliation they share with

Job Satisfaction: whether or not being satisfied with one’s current position, status, wage, companies, etc.

The author talks about the reason for working and doing jobs and writes about the importance of work. In this book Mr. Novak ties these fundamental queries by describing the meaning of work as a calling.

The Value Percept Theory argues that job satisfaction depends on whether a job supplies the things an individual value most. Overall satisfactions derive form combined levels of satisfaction from various elements of an individual’s job, whether it’s: pay, promotion, supervision, coworkers, or the work itself. Job satisfaction is based on cognitive and affective components, which is evaluated by what an individual thinks about the job, and how they feel. Cognition evaluation is based on experiences, weighing different aspects of a job; as affect is a reaction of the job, which can fluctuate based on moods and emotions. Level of dissatisfaction is measured by the difference between what one has and what one wants, and the level of importance of that facet to the individual. Statistics have proven, that supplying individuals with what they value, will increase the chance of better performance, which has a high correlation with an individual’s affective commitment with the organization.

In 1980, Donald Super introduced a theory that described career development in terms of life stages and life roles. Super was one of the first theorists to discuss the constantly evolving nature of career development, and the importance of finding a balance between career and personal life. Super’s developmental model emphasized how personal experiences interact with occupational preferences in creating one’s self-concept. Super discussed how each of us progress through various life and career development stages, including growth, exploration, establishment, maintenance, and disengagement. He also discussed that each of us take on different roles as we go through life, such as a child, student, leisurite, citizen, worker, parent, and spouse. Each of these roles has an impact on our personal and professional development, and on our work/life balance. Finally, his “archway” of career determinants detailed how both personality characteristics (intelligence, needs, values) and societal characteristics (labor market, school, family) influence our career choices and have a major impact on our career development.

Job satisfaction is a pleasurable or positive emotional state resulting from the appraisal of one’s job or job experiences. It has been treated both as a general attitude and satisfaction with five specific dimensions of the job: pay, the work itself, promotion opportunities, supervision, and coworkers. Challenging work, valued rewards, opportunities for advancement, competent supervision, and supportive coworkers are dimensions of the job that can lead to satisfaction (Nelson & Quick, 2013, pg.

Job satisfaction can be defined as an attitude or feeling one can have toward ones job. Job satisfaction is "the extent to which people like (satisfaction) or dislike (dissatisfaction) in their jobs. (Spector 1997) One of the biggest studies in job satisfaction was the Hawthorne studies which were credited to Elton Mayo in the year's nineteen twenty-four to nineteen fifty-three. Elton