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And what is it that makes it meaningful for you?
And if you don't, why not? What is stopping you?
And if you don't, why not? What is stopping you?
Do you feel that you Do Meaningful Work?
- Thread starter Rachel...lol
- Start date
With unemployment at 10% I imagine people are just trying to work on putting food on the table instead of obtaining self actualization through their job.
But to answer the question, sometimes its meaningful and sometimes its not.
You seem like the kind of person that defines yourself through your job, which may be why you are asking this question? To see how many other folks are like that, therefore justifying your views?
Or this could all be teh pain meds talking.
But to answer the question, sometimes its meaningful and sometimes its not.
You seem like the kind of person that defines yourself through your job, which may be why you are asking this question? To see how many other folks are like that, therefore justifying your views?
Or this could all be teh pain meds talking.
Meaningful ... interesting question. I take PRIDE in the knowledge that what I do, I do very well, and the work I do provides a service that can be important.
HOWEVER, it's lonely work (not something that bothers me, actually) eventually I'll be phased out, either technologically or with outsourcing or I'll permanently blow a tendon, and I feel the compensation is insufficient. I could make more money if I didn't subcontract, but that's a whole other headache.
I guess something is meaningful TO YOU if you would choose to do it if you didn't need the money. I can't say I'd do this if I had no other choice.
As to why not get out ... easier said than done to start over again, especially as you get older. I'd have to work twice as many hours (or more) to make the same money I do now and I'm living paycheck to paycheck as it is.
HOWEVER, it's lonely work (not something that bothers me, actually) eventually I'll be phased out, either technologically or with outsourcing or I'll permanently blow a tendon, and I feel the compensation is insufficient. I could make more money if I didn't subcontract, but that's a whole other headache.
I guess something is meaningful TO YOU if you would choose to do it if you didn't need the money. I can't say I'd do this if I had no other choice.
As to why not get out ... easier said than done to start over again, especially as you get older. I'd have to work twice as many hours (or more) to make the same money I do now and I'm living paycheck to paycheck as it is.
What do you do in healthcare and what about it are you appreciating?
I am asking because I've been increasingly interested on socio-economics and the dynamics that shape our lives - so was just purely interested to hear honest responses.
Meaningful work can be interpreted in so many different ways - but some things to contemplate:
Do you work because you have to - you punch in, you punch out, you're a clock watcher?
Are you easily replaceable?
Are you reactive to the demands of "the man" or are you proactive in making things better?
Not even just make things better, but do you try to improve a process? Solve a process that others can't touch?
Do you see the working class as two divisions: Management and Labor or do you see something else there somewhere?
Do you feel like work is only a means to an end, or something more?
Is your work meaningful to you, or just work?
super glad you threw that in there - if you're proud of it, I think that makes it meaningful
Aside from being part of a team effort - do you enjoy what you do? Is it a J O B? Or is it a part of you without making it a negative connotation?
Im self employed so its a different dynamic. I would say if someone is a business owner or self employed that the work inherently has more meaning since they are not working for anyone else.
What would you do then? If something like that were to happen would you be heartbroken and lost? Is it something that is internalized in you? An identity?
I'm not saying it has to be - I'm just trying to glean a little bit from others and gage a degree of value that a profession holds to ones' identity.
Work is a means to an end, that's why it's called work.
Anything else is called "Hobby," "Vacation" or perhaps "Personal Passion."
How's that old saw go "Find what you love and the money will follow?" Yeah, that was a different time, when you could afford to follow your dream. Now for most of us the goal is just find a way to keep gas in the car and keep the electric on while you spend most of your days living paycheck to paycheck in low grade terror.
Anything else is called "Hobby," "Vacation" or perhaps "Personal Passion."
How's that old saw go "Find what you love and the money will follow?" Yeah, that was a different time, when you could afford to follow your dream. Now for most of us the goal is just find a way to keep gas in the car and keep the electric on while you spend most of your days living paycheck to paycheck in low grade terror.
No I wouldn't say it is a different dynamic - But I suppose your work does have meaning to you
Maybe somebody would say "I am a doctor so of course my work is meaningful" but I'm going at it a different way - not is it valuable to society, but is it meaningful to you? Not just "do you enjoy what you do" but do you grow as a person, approach your day with a challenge and then use the things you learn in your daily challenge that you can apply to the rest of your life?
I am proud of my work. Sometimes I'm told I work too much (my dad tells me that mostly), but I don't see it as a burden. Different times and generations and goals. I also appreciate the values of my company and love to give our elevator speech. I work often on weekends, but generally I don't mind - I don't have to be at home taking care of kids. I kind of feel like I have a goal and as a young professional I have some dues to pay (some) but if I didn't like what I do, then I certainly wouldn't feel the same way.
I think what I'm going through right now is trying to sort between the whole - is my work so much of my persona that I can't separate myself from it... just doing some introspection, etc and curious to know how others feel.
HEARTBROKEN? Gods no, I'd be frantic because I'd have to find a way to clear at least $300 a week ASAP. Two months with no paychecks (and if my job went away tomorrow, I wouldn't even collect unemployment) and we're tapping savings. Two or three months after that that's it, we're done.
However, to answer your question, my profession is not my identity, it's something I do to pay the bills. I identify myself as a Wiccan (with strong shamanic tendencies) wife and mother, first, but in no particular order.
MEaningful jobs are normally some of the most low paying jobs around. Teachers, police and fire all are not only meaningful but necessary yet most look down on the people that do them and the pay and benefits suck.
I build buildings...Its nice to be able to drive by 10 years later and still say "I built that" I am a project manager so I am in management but I dont look at there being 2 divisions of middle class. I just view us all as have nots. The elite upper class has Washington by the balls and the system is set up to keep us where we are. I am no better than the guys who work for me. We all work to pay bills and hopefully save a little so I can provide a better life for my daughter than what i had. That is, after all, the American Dream right?
I build buildings...Its nice to be able to drive by 10 years later and still say "I built that" I am a project manager so I am in management but I dont look at there being 2 divisions of middle class. I just view us all as have nots. The elite upper class has Washington by the balls and the system is set up to keep us where we are. I am no better than the guys who work for me. We all work to pay bills and hopefully save a little so I can provide a better life for my daughter than what i had. That is, after all, the American Dream right?
I'm not trying to make this political, simply understand how YOU identify with your work.
mrplunkey
New member
I get to do a blend of disposable medical devices, orthopedic softgoods & braces, wound care products, information technology and now orthopedic implants.
Wound care can be very satisfying because you can see patients with deep diabetic ulcers or other terrible wounds who heal instead of getting things cut off.
Bracing is another very satisfying area because we'll do products that delay or eliminate surgery and/or drugs. If cleverly used, you can save healthcare big money and have happier patients.
Implants are in a lot of ways a logical extension of bracing. We're just starting them right now, but it's incredibly fun. I'm used to devices that have substitute products (i.e. swapping out a walking boot with a plaster cast). These implants don't have substitutes -- unless you count amputation as a viable alternative.
mrplunkey
New member
There is absolutely nothing wrong with blending your identity with your profession. If you fall in love with what you do, it makes work enjoyable and it can pay very, very well. Some of the most professionally, personally and financially successful people I know blend what they do into who they are.
Where you'll have a dilemma is when you want to blend your identity with your profession, but it doesn't pay well. You can get great job satisfaction, but you'd still fall short of your financial goals. For example, if money were not a consideration, I could see myself as a machinist, computer programmer or professor.
Well I look at my work as a way to pay bills and try to make a better life.
That seems to be an oxymoron - we spend so much of our life at our JOB, how can you make your life better if its only purpose is to pay the bills?
i dont know what your idea is of not paying well is but most of the professors I know make 6 figures and are quite happy blending identity with profession. Besides if someone doesnt see the financial viability of a profession it stands to reason they wont be becoming one with it any time soon.
mrplunkey
New member
Exactly.
Once you decide you're just working to pay the bills, you compartmentalize your life into a work self and a non-working self. That's why you should crunch them together. You'll know you're there when you can't tell when you are and aren't working.
that would require deconstructing our whole socioeconomic strata and somehow giving everyone awesome jobs with requisite pay that they can fuse with their identity. Dont think that would work.
You know there are always going to be jobs that are just to pay the bills across the board.
mrplunkey
New member
That's very fair.
Professors can make a very respectable living, but there isn't much upside. If you want to dedicate your energy to the classroom, that's exactly what you'll make.
There are opportunities in research dollars as well as private sector dollars, but they normally involve doing far less teaching and much more grant writing and publication. That has appeal to me as well but if your'e going to go that route, you might as well join the private sector.
I don't think a person just "gets" a job whereas they fuse their identity?
mrplunkey
New member
I believe there's a job for everyone though. It really comes down to getting the right person into the right job.
There will always be people who insist (or are at least comfortable) segmenting their lives into work and personal, but I believe that's a pretty hard way to live.
Thats my point. Not all jobs give the potential or the personal fullfillment some people desire.
Its easier to see my side of it once you have kids. The job serves a purpose...its to make money to provide for my child. To put back for college so she can have a chance at a better life just like my dad did. He was a great provider...worked more hours than i can count as a diesle mechanic but he busted his butt and put me through college so that I wouldnt have to work as hard as him and to be more marketable and ale to compete in the job market. I spend the time at work but my life is at home...or at softball pratice...or choir rehersal...or before the miley smoking dope video, just watching some hannah montana...lol
Rach, some people with families and bigger responsibilities than you or I know dont have the luxury to ponder or pursue careers that give them more emotional growth or become one with their identity. Not trying to dismiss your questions or theories but a legion of people are like Lander just trying to provide for families.
There are two ways to satisfy desiers at work. Relationships and the work itself. If you have a job that does not fulfill your desires you can do some changes to improve it but ppl really should..after time try to change the situation. Hours turn into weeks and weeks turn into years and years into a lifetime. Life is too short. On the other hand it all depends on what you desire. This falls into where people don't "get" other people because not everyone desires and values the same things. Everyone expects everyone else to value what they do
That may be how it is for you, but living in low grade terror is not how the majority of the nation lives. That sounds like china or something. No matter how our economy is going there will always be tons of people with drive and ambition to make a good lives for themselves and then go out and achieve it. May not be their ultimate dream job but they certainly find fullfillment and prosperity and happiness from their occupations and what it provides. Some of these were born into opportunity and it comes easy, some had to work very hard for it. Millions of people do this regardless. Our nation would not have become so prosperous if everyone was living paycheck to paycheck, and it didnt spiral into third world status just now either.
The majority of people that claim to live paycheck to paycheck really just have a problem blowing money on shit they dont need. But they arent living in terror. The economy will rebound and the millions of people who are determined to have a good life will find it a little easier to do.
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I feel you rach, but the one thing you're not grasping, is that people have to provide for themselves first, and their families....
That comes before the fact that they want their work to have meaning.
A large amount of people want their work to have meaning, but sadly, not many are able to.........
I feel that if you're happy with at your work, or with your work, then it has meaning.
it's all about what you feel and think
That comes before the fact that they want their work to have meaning.
A large amount of people want their work to have meaning, but sadly, not many are able to.........
I feel that if you're happy with at your work, or with your work, then it has meaning.
it's all about what you feel and think
I'm not disputing anybody's comments - just looking to open up conversation BTW here is my agenda for my interview tomorrow:
12:45 PM Maren McGrane, Manager
Performance
Talent Selection Interview #2
1:30 PM Ken Ruiz, Senior Manager
Performance
Technical Interview
2:15 PM Jay Sutton, Senior Manager
Performance
Technical Interview
3:00 PM Derek Bang, Partner
Performance
Technical Interview
What the heck is a Technical Interview anyway?
BTW here is my agenda for my interview tomorrow:12:45 PM Maren McGrane, Manager
Performance
Talent Selection Interview #2
1:30 PM Ken Ruiz, Senior Manager
Performance
Technical Interview
2:15 PM Jay Sutton, Senior Manager
Performance
Technical Interview
3:00 PM Derek Bang, Partner
Performance
Technical Interview
What the heck is a Technical Interview anyway?
mrplunkey
New member
I'm not disputing anybody's comments - just looking to open up conversation
12:45 PM Maren McGrane, Manager
Performance
Talent Selection Interview #2
1:30 PM Ken Ruiz, Senior Manager
Performance
Technical Interview
2:15 PM Jay Sutton, Senior Manager
Performance
Technical Interview
3:00 PM Derek Bang, Partner
Performance
Technical Interview
What the heck is a Technical Interview anyway?
It might mean nerd-talk (i.e. do you know the details of your work).
But on second thought, it might mean that it's a script-based interview where you are scored on different categories analytically.
But I'll confess, I'm just guessing. I do most of my interviews over lunch and keep things very casual.
I'd agree with Cindy, it all depends on your goals. At this stage in my life I'm trying to satisfy myself, its really not about other people. Maybe when I'm all set and where I wanna be I could contribute. When you say meaningful I think of charity work, changing someone's life without a monetary reward. Those people are rare. Someone mentioned cops and doctors. Cops think about their pension and not to mention all the politics within ( a whole other story). Doctors wouldn't see a patient without health insurance, would they? We see this everyday. So much for meaningful work...
I just had ortho surgery and they got the financial stuff handled during the preop appt to make sure everyone pays up. I can understand that but the entire surgery process i sort of felt like i was on an assembly line. I guess everyone does it so much they lose bedside manner.
It always comes down to $$$. In a way I can understand that, if you are not taken care of I don't see how you'd be able to take care of someone else financially or otherwise. Unless you are Oprah and can afford to open up a school in Africa. In the meantime, there are 12 public schools closing in the state of NY alone...
In regards to bedside manners, yeah it sucks but,that's because they are so overworked that they are working like robots. Its easy to lose track.
Rach, if you are looking for some sort of purpose try to help someone in need. If someone you know is out of work, help them with their resume and try to get the word out. that means a lot to someone who is going through a rough patch. They will always remember what you did.
redshirt27se
New member
I provide a skilled service that has a need. Meaningful? Maybe. I enjoy it and it pays the bills.
I dread Monday mornings
I can honestly say I've never had a job where I hated to go to work on Monday. I am very lucky.
javaguru
Banned
Pick3 works the glory hole at The Greasy Pole ....Monday morning means he isn't working...I assume that's why he dreads it.
I can believe this about you, but I don't think it's because of luck. I think it because of your POV on life. Positive POV = positive experience in most cases.
bakemeacookie
New member
mrplunkey
New member
Strangely enough, there's a mountain of evidence that says assembly-line setups provide much better care at lower costs. The catch is, patients often don't feel as satisfied under such a system. It's one of the fundamental challenges in healthcare -- patients know how they feel but often don't understand what is and isn't quality medicine.
canadianhitman
Well-known member
Good point...bedside manner is so fucking overrated. I'm not there to be coddled and have my ass kissed, I'm there to have a successful procedure followed by a smooth and complete recovery/rehab/ect. If you told me the best surgeon in the area was a complete asshole who'd probably insult me at least twice during the pre-op consulation, I'd still want that guy to do my operation. People lose sight of what's really important: getting fixed up and healed successfully.
What I currently do is completely meaningless to me, however co workers love it, yet when I did the same job for alienware it was meaningful and one of the best jobs I've ever had,but I mostly feel completely rewarded when I get to work in my field which Icant do much of here yet....
mrplunkey
New member
Yup. And that's the huge problem. Everyone wants to pay for quality in healthcare, but what is quality:
1) Is it a comparison of pre-operative and post-operative assessments?
2) Is it following care guidelines as published by professional societies?
3) Is it the physician's bedside manner?
4) Is the the patient's overall satisfaction?
5) Is it a peer-reviewed assessment of each case?
In the absence of that, it's going to come down to who has the lowest price. And I'm not always sure the low bidder should win here.
Dont get me wrong, I dont really care how nice everyone is as long as they fix me up right. I just thought it was an interesting process that seems to maximize profit at expense of patient attention or comfort. For example, my surgery was scheduled for 7am, then they called me to say can i schedule for 6am, then had to get there at 5am for that, then they called begging me to get there at 4:45am.....seems like they are trying to cram in as much as possible and patient convenience is sacrificed.
Then when i finally got to see the doc right before surgery i had to verify what the hell he was even going to do since the nurse had a different operation order on the chart (chart didnt have tendon reattachment, had to verify im getting that done right before getting wheeled in the OR). Everyone just seemed so hurried.
Im an old grizzled surgery vet so no big deal to me but someone new to all this i could see getting freaked out.
Then when i finally got to see the doc right before surgery i had to verify what the hell he was even going to do since the nurse had a different operation order on the chart (chart didnt have tendon reattachment, had to verify im getting that done right before getting wheeled in the OR). Everyone just seemed so hurried.
Im an old grizzled surgery vet so no big deal to me but someone new to all this i could see getting freaked out.
From what I understand, there are pockets where things are "good" or not. I think a lot has to do what field you're in, too. I'm not shitting you, of the people that I know who are employed, less than one third of them are happy in the work and feels fairly compensated.
Everyone I know who has been laid off in the past two years is still unemployed OR, if they have found work, they are pretty severely under-employed.
Be grateful you don't relate to the "low grade terror" feeling. Nothing sucks more than feeling your life is a prison that you barely have control over and can't escape from. I'm stuck in my job, mainly because I'm stuck in my house. Granted, I'm here because of decisions I made when I was very young, but I'm still stuck.
ricco561
New member
Check your karma and you tell me.
It could have been worse - interview number one was the classic... "Tell me about a time when you did xx and xx and what did you do or how did you handle it"
#2 was with the guy I talked to on the phone that I would be working directly with - and he closed it with very awesome and positive things and told me he wants me there. Interview number 3 was good. And number 4... Mr. "Bang" well he is 7 1/2 ft tall and intimidating as all heck. We shall see.
PICK3
New member
ricco561
New member
I never heard back on my message?
No, I don't do meaningful work. But then again I don't enjoy working at all. I consider actually going to work pure drudgery.
I would rather go back to the days where women just supervised their servants, looked nice, knew how to dance, made polite conversation, and were socially active.
Anyhoo...
what do you do rob
mrplunkey
New member
I completely agree.
And not to single you out, but it's a good chance for me to pick on feminism
Think about how much happier women are today than they were in the 1950's.
You've come a long way baby. From this:
To this...
To this!
Receptionist
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