In today's world, work occupies a significant portion of our lives, yet many individuals find themselves discontented and disengaged with their jobs. However, Barry Schwartz challenges the prevailing notion that work is merely a means to earn a paycheck and proposes a transformative perspective in his thought-provoking article, "Rethinking Work." He argues that we should advocate for a redefinition of work that will create work environments that both values and engages employees, ultimately leading to individual fulfillment and organizational success. Schwartz achieves this conclusion all by delving into the negative consequences of routinized and depersonalized work, sharing the innate human desire for meaningful and engaging experiences, …show more content…
He emphasizes how contemporary workplaces are built on the premise that work is solely a means to earn a paycheck, evident in the strict monitoring and oversight of employees' productivity. Schwartz states, "Work is structured on the assumption that we do it only because we have to. The call center employee is monitored to ensure that he ends each call quickly. The office worker's keystrokes are overseen to guarantee productivity." This depersonalization of work reduces employees to mere cogs in a production machine, stripping away opportunities for meaning and engagement. Schwartz argues that by eliminating these vital elements from work, organizations inadvertently create a disengaged and discontented workforce. As he eloquently puts it, "When you take all opportunities for meaning and engagement out of the work that people do, why would they work, except for the wage? What Smith and his descendants failed to realize is that rather than exploiting a fact about human nature, they were creating a fact about human nature." Therefore, it becomes crucial to reconsider the prevailing notion of work and strive for a redefinition that values and engages employees, fostering fulfillment and ultimately benefiting the …show more content…
By examining the negative consequences of depersonalized and routinized work, he highlights the importance of valuing and engaging employees to foster fulfillment and organizational success. Schwartz emphasizes that individuals desire meaningful and engaging experiences within the realm of work, yearning for challenges, discretion, personal growth, and purpose. When organizations recognize and honor these fundamental human aspirations, they create work environments that promote engagement, fulfillment, and personal growth. Furthermore, Schwartz establishes a positive connection between purposeful work, employee performance, and company profitability, emphasizing that workplaces that offer meaningful tasks and autonomy tend to be more profitable. By aligning work with employees' abilities and interests, organizations tap into intrinsic motivation and commitment, leading to improved performance and job satisfaction. Ultimately, valuing purposeful work and prioritizing employee well-being establishes a virtuous cycle that contributes to long-term profitability and success. This redefinition of work is not only relevant to individuals seeking fulfillment but also crucial for organizations aiming for sustainable growth and prosperity in our rapidly evolving world. By embracing the transformative perspective presented by Barry
In the nonfiction book, Deep Work, Cal Newport persists to convince the reader of the significance of “deep work” and the pollution coming from “shallow work” in today’s evolving economy. In order to begin instructing on how to incorporate deep work into our daily lives, Cal Newport first proves his credibility by pointing out how famous people in today’s society are thriving. By spotlighting numerous people like Bill Gates, Carl Jung, Woody Allen, and even himself , Newport demonstrates the obvious difference and magnitude of the effect isolation from the noisy outside crowd can achieve. In each scenario, every person is greatly benefitted from some form of isolation from distractions or deep work.
A memorable work experience will also involve an individual who feels that they and their work matters. The idea of slavery is shun upon because the effort of the slaves was not properly recognized, nor were their effort of any matter to the white masters and slaveholders. Former slave Frederick Douglass’s narrative of his life as a slave under the supervision of slaveholder Mr. Covey focus not on his unpaid hard labor, but that he did not he mattered to. Douglass addressed that there could never be too much “rain, blow, hail, or snow” to work (Douglass 320). Forcing someone to work from day until dawn despite the condition of the weather is a message to them that they do not matter.
Have you ever wondered if there’s a thing such as “working too much”? In Richard Schiffman’s article “Why we should work less” he writes about the effects working too much has on Americans. Working too much takes a toll on peoples mental health, they could lose their social life, or begin drinking for relaxation, along with many other affects. The author builds an argument to procure the audience that we need to work less. Schiffman creates this argument by using multiple techniques such as using personal experiences from his friends, data to support his claim, and appeals to the audience's sense of logic.
In Schwartz’s article “Rethinking Work”, he questions the satisfaction or dissatisfaction people have with their jobs, how they feel about their wage, and their purpose as a worker. Schwartz starts off by saying that the current way the workplace runs was based on a system that was created to minimize the need for skill and close attention. The idea was that workers were only working to get paid and in layman terms were lazy. He continues to say that this approach to work is not doing what it’s supposed to do; in fact it is doing the opposite. Working in an environment where your only motive to be there is your paycheck leads to dissatisfaction and poor work performance.
Because of our service-economy, few people work traditional all-day shifts in huge factories with masses of co-workers. Workers may be part of a large body of employees, but may not be in contact with them during their entire shift, or feel as if they are truly part of a
"Every Good Endeavor”, by Timothy Keller, starts with an amazing statement that I wanted to share in the beginning of this journal. He says, "The Bible begins talking about work as soon as it begins talking about anything - that is how important and basic it is.” (Keller, Pg 33) I love that statement. Work is basic and important for our foundation as humans. The first two chapters of this book dig into the reality of what work means for our lives.
In “Tyranny of Choice,” Barry Schwartz brings to the table the topic of choice. The common believe is more choices, equals more freedom. Under that assumption we are living in the best times then. Everything in the world has multiple options to choose from. The choices range from what type of gum you want, to the best life insurance policy for your family.
When you think of work, what do you think of? Toni Morrison and Danial Adkinson think of supporting their family and using work as an escape from family. Morrison believes that your job does not define you, but how you act and respond to it does. Adkison believes that your job is not all about work, you can also find family and friends. While Morrison uses compare and contrast to demonstrate that your job does not define you; Adkison sets out to prove, through imagery, that your job is not all about work and that you can find family and friends in a workplace.
Tokumitsu’s article shows that she is very passionate about this subject, which could be that she is writing from her own experiences within the workforce and this helps make the reading more powerful. The constant battle for love in your labor can divide companies, but examining drive will determine getting what needs to be done or not. Using this knowledge is our future, hope, and way out of the zombified, DWYL motto. Always remember, do as much as you can! Works Cited Stanny, B. (2018).
The author Andrew Curry thinks that workers today are unfulfilled because they would rather work a job they do not like and earn more money than work a job that they are passionate about and earn less. He also talks about how people seem to work more than relax in today's age like when he says “instead of working less, our hours have stayed steady or risen.” (Curry, Kirszner and Mandell 399) the evidence that he uses to connect his view is the amount of people who complain about their jobs. Nowadays everyone knows a person that constantly complains about his or her job but they still work that same job because of the financial gain. Many people today hate the job they work but that same job is the reason they have a car, house etc.
In the essay “Liberal Arts and the Bottom Line,” by Lane Wallace argues that employees are being blindly taking advance of by their employer. Are employers trying to push strong motivations upon their working to increase a person self-drive or only to increase the numbers of product that is produces? According to the text, “The popularity of the late economist Milton Friedman’s philosophy among business people has never surprised me much” (Wallace). The author begins to detect Friedman’s misconception within his argument using an appeal of pathos to support his evidence. By helping the audience pursue to best path of correct reasoning that also allow the public to acknowledge Friedman’s misconception.
In response to Americans working less, writer Richard Schiffman argues that the importance of spending time with your family and friends, working less, and taking care of your personal needs, need to come before working all day and then bringing home more work to stress yourself over. Schiffman builds his argument by using anecdotes and a pathological stand point. Schiffman started his article by telling a friend's issue that they addressed him with - her work was “killing’ her and that she was thinking of leaving her job to take care of herself. As well as sharing another friend's concern that her job “...routinely forced to work late and at home on weekends—often without pay—on the projects she didn't have time to finish at the office. With
Working is one of the many tasks that most adults have to endure. As for Phil, work was not just a task, but was a life commitment that took valuable time away. Ellen Goodman describes her stance of this issue in the piece, “The Company Man,” by employing repetition of important phrases and by showcasing the irony of Paul’s life. This conveys a sense of sympathy for Paul and his family and disapproval of his actions, who let his work consume his life, leading to his death. To begin, the use of repetition allowed Ellen Goodman to show her critical attitude and pity towards Phil.
A present-day office is filled with rigid laws, ethics, and instructions that must be followed by an employee. Strong human relationships are also built over time, while details of both the good and bad aspect of co-workers personal life become common knowledge with mild boosts of the office romance between employees that spices up the office environment. All these aspects of a typical office were captured by Orozco, bringing to mind a quote by Arlie Russel Hochschile, “For many of us, work is the one place where we feel appreciated. The things that we long to experience at home – pride in our accomplishments, laughter and fun, relationships that aren’t complex – we sometimes experience most often in the office. Bosses applaud us when we do a good job.