Does your work matter?

If you are waiting for someone to give you meaningful work, you are going to be waiting a lifetime. It is your responsibility to mold a job that matters. Meaningful work is created, not given. The more that we can imbue our work with meaning, creativity, and value, the more fulfilled we become. During the COVID19 pandemic, people reevaluated their relationship to their work and asked hard questions. The result was many left their jobs in pursuit of a "more meaningful" opportunity.

It is our responsibility to fill our work with meaning, creativity, and value. This is not the company's responsibility. Instead, companies have to provide us the space to express these attributes.

Let’s look at how to cultivate meaning, creativity, and value to create the job we want.

Meaning

Take a moment and ask yourself:

What does your (previous) job mean to you?

Let's take an example where the person is a mid-level manager in a hotel. They might say, "my job means a paycheck to me."

If your motivation is a “paycheck” that is an external motivator. Meaning, you can't control it every day, and thus it will be difficult to find meaning at work.

Ask yourself a second question now:

"What are my internal motivators?"

Internal motivators are feelings or drive that come from within you and are not dependent on anything outside of you.

For example, you may be motivated by praise from your manager, but that is not an internal motivator.

An internal one would be "mastery" or "a sense of achievement."

To find meaning in our work, we start off with identifying all of our internal motivators. Once identified, it is easier to find out how to fuel them at work..that's where creativity comes in!

Creativity

You are creative. Period. All of us are creative and are capable of creating. When you are molding a job that matters, creativity is the manner you express your internal motivation. Once you have identified all of your internal motivators, bring them to life! In order for them to have power, they need to exist. Therefore, creativity is the process where you take an internal motivator and give it physical expression. You create!

For example, if "mastery" is a motivator, ask yourself "how do I become masterful at this?" Creativity will respond to you and say “here are your options: get more training, start to train others, or redesign the process for better efficiency.”

People can get lost with the term "creativity" and think it only refers to art, but creativity is about original ideas. To be creative at work is to evaluate the current structure and reimagine it. What are the ways that you would be able to further develop it? When you are in this creative flow your are taking your original ideas and feeding your internal motivation. This is what creates value.

Value

The last piece of the puzzle to mold a job that matters is to provide value. When you create based on your internal motivation, there is a loop between (1) what motivates you and (2) the acts of creativity that fuel your motivation. This is why your job starts to matter to you. This is the loop that feeds your internal motivation! This also creates value. The job in and of itself is valuable because it feeds your internal motivations. It may also add value for other people because every project you create will have ripple effects on the lives of those around you. If, for example, you created a new training program, the value to you is a sense of mastery. The value to your teammates is an easier work environment, customers receive better service, and the company's efficiency and profitability increase!

All good work creates value. It creates value for you or for others. Hopefully through this process you are creating value for yourself. You are learning new skills, feeding your motivation, or creating a lifestyle that you desire. Remember that value is unique to you. Value is your judgment of what is important in your life. No one else's.

If you are frustrated at work and feel a disconnect between your internal self and your job, you’re not alone. However, the trick might not be to leave, it may just be time to reevaluate your approach.

Molding a job where you create meaning is possible! As you take a personal inventory of your motivations, I would love to hear all of the creative ways you are brining them to life!