The Quest for more continues

In continuance from the discussion from last week I'd like to discuss again the why of work. And I pose that question to you right now: why do you go to work everyday? Is it habit? Is it for security? Is it for your family? Is it to attain a position? Is it because that's what you've done for the last several years? As with most things I don't think there is one correct answer but it's worth considering. Why do we do what we will spend around 20% of our entire waking lives doing every day?

Here's some thoughts from Guy Kawasaki, Author of Art of the Start and former Chief Evangelist for Apple, on why we should work:



"If you make meaning, you will probably make money."
Agreed.

I've been pondering these reasons lately mainly because I am at the shaping stage basically of how I will live the rest of my life and I've been noticing the need for  balance. As I go progressing through school and learning the principles of business, I am learning that I have to constantly balance and give perspective to those principles by equally indoctrinating myself with truth and religious principles. Otherwise I go flying off course without a direction other than to "make it" or make money, or get the next good job, internship, etc. I am, and I think we all are, in continual need of a reminder and refresher of the why behind what we do.

And if we do examine that I think we may all be a little bit happier with life.

The Monetization of Life

 I am currently enrolled in the Marriott Business school at Brigham Young University. In this school are some of the best and brightest going out into the business world. Accountants, Strategists, Financial Analysts and other business professionals are prepared by some of the top players in their respective fields to "go forth and serve". 

          I am a huge advocate of just about everything that has to do with BYU and it's business program, however I do believe that one of the main elements and fallacies of mainstream business does seep in and pervert just a little bit of the "higher goal" of BYU in general. This can be summed up in my experience in a  recent lecture series that I attended. While talking about the interviewing process that companies go through the teacher asked simply, "what is the purpose of business?" This question excited me as I reflected on the many ways that business effects people and the good things that can be done through them,  the personal development etc. However a student promptly answered with a plain response, "to make money."

"Exactly," replied the instructor, who then moved on with her presentation. 

         My question is: is it really? Is that really all there is to it?

For some people obviously the answer is a resounding yes! For most people in fact. That is something that I believe is one of the greatest errors and plagues of the modern workplace. People don't go to work to do what they love, to make a difference, to grow and develop, to lift their organization etc. -- they do it to make money. To make money, stick it in their pockets, take it home and feel a little big more secure about life. Stuck, or perceiving to be stuck in "this economy" they find whatever job they can drudge their way to work everyday. This of course can be a temporary and maybe even a necessary solution for those in extreme debt or poverty, where creditors are calling and circumstances worsen everyday but muy argument is that in most cases people can get out of their rut, the very moment that they decide to not go to work just for the money.

         As an illustration let us think for a moment how long the average human being spends at work in their lifetime. We'll say the average person has a lifespan of 80 years (which is generous), retires at 65, works the standard 40 hr. work week starting at age 24 and takes 2 weeks of vacation a year. That person during their work years will have a total of 2,000 hours on the job every single year. He'll complete the equivalent of working for 9.3 years, 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.

       

        With that said can we really believe that a loving and purposeful God put us here in life to spend 9 years of it in drudgery "just to get by."

I argue that the answer is an absolute NO. We are sent here to do more than that and not only to suffer our way through life. We CAN decide to have a happy and fulfilling life but it takes a leap of faith. To start out, we need to commit to ourselves to not do only what will get us the money but do what will help us do what love.

I've approached the subject in somewhat of a round about way, but you can rest assured that you will hear more about it in the coming posts. For now go find something that you love to do and do it because you love it.