Meaningful Work

So lately Jared and I have been thinking a lot about work. Mostly due to Jared's current stressful work situation, which will hopefully improve when he switches over to neurosurgery in September. Work is a blessing and we are grateful that Jared has a job, especially in with this economy, but we have felt that there are some things lacking.

In the book Outliers, which we recently read together, it talked about three important things that are necessary to have meaningful work. I thought these would be interesting to consider how you might change your current work situation to find more meaning, or if you are an employer, how you can incorporate more of these elements to help your employees find more fulfillment in their jobs.

1. Clear relationship between work and reward
Unfortunately Jared currently sees no reward for his extra hours or effort. When he interviewed he was promised productivity bonuses, which he unfortunately hasn't gotten despite his working 60-80 hours a week. This is more due to the payer mix--uninsured, medicare and medicaid--than anything else, yet it is still frustrating since as a salaried employee the more he works, the less he gets paid. The nurses that work under him currently make about 40,ooo more a year than he does since they get paid hourly and extra for overtime and holidays. In addition to no financial reward he also gets no emotional rewards of praise or encouragement from the cantankerous and temperamental surgeons he works with.

As for me, it is sometimes hard as a mother to see the relationship between work and reward. There isn't a monthly paycheck so I need to look for my rewards in other places. Some "rewards" for that help me find fulfillment are:

1. When Abby or Maddy obey or behave well--especially in church or when playing with friends and neighbors.
2. Hugs, loves, and snuggles
3. When I see Abby sharing or applying a lesson we taught her in FHE
4. When Jared or someone else recognizes my efforts and praises me for them
5. When I see my children learn something new or master a new skill that I have tried hard to teach them
6. When I accomplish a personal goal such as breast feeding for a year, finishing a sewing project by a certain date, or staying within a strict budget for the month.

The hard weeks are usually weeks when Jared is gone a lot, and when the girls are really whiny, disobedient, and fussy.

2. The work has a degree of complexity Jared's current situation does fulfill this requirement for meaningful work. Of course there are a lot of the day to day rote tasks, but overall his work has enough variety and complexity to keep his mind busy and active.

As a mother, especially a new mother, there was some complexity in learning how to care for a new baby, but for the most part a lot of it is physical--nursing, getting up in the middle of the night, carrying car seats, etc. The trick is often to stay loving and patient despite the lack of sleep and the endless crying. Now that Abby and Maddy are a bit older the mothering part requires more complexity as I work hard to teach them and keep them happy and active. I have found more meaning in motherhood as I have started doing pre-school with the girls and have focused on teaching them specific skills. I also have felt fulfilment as I have tried to learn new skills (sewing, gardening, trying new recipes, etc.) and keep my mind active through reading new books, etc.

3. The work is autonomous
This is one of the most frustrating things for Jared in his current job. It is irritating to feel like you have no control over your schedule or decisions. Jared hopes to one day be at least a part-owner in his practice so that he can be more involved in decision making. Eventually Jared wants to follow in his dad's footsteps and own his own business because he feels that the autonomy it would give him would be worth the extra work and stress of owning your own business. I on the other hand like having health insurance and a regular paycheck that I can rely on, so we will see if we can find some sort of compromise.

As a mother I have a lot of autonomy--which in itself can be a challenge. Sometimes when Abby is really disobedient I would welcome some extra help or advice. I often get advice from family, other moms, and parenting books, yet this advice is often conflicting or doesn't necessarily work for my child like it does for someone else's. Most of all I find that I have to rely on the Lord through prayer and the Spirit to know how to deal with my children and their unique challenges.

Another element that Gladwell doesn't mention, but that I think is important in finding meaning in your work is having breaks (weekends, vacations, time off). I think that as much as you may love your job there is a lot to be said for being able to get away from it for a while and then coming back to it with a new perspective and enthusiasm. Sometimes you can get too much of a good thing. We haven't been able to do this yet (due to Jared's work schedule) but my sister has her husband give her Tuesday nights off when he takes the kids and she can do whatever she wants. Sometimes she goes shopping by herself, visits a friend, or reads a book. She feels it has helped her be a better mom if she feels she has some alone time once in a while.

What has been your experience with work? What jobs have you found the most fulfilling? What have you done to find more fulfillment in your work?