So what is work anyways? I turned 50 last month and I have committed myself to a question that will guide the rest of my life. It’s a big claim to make. And yet, it rings true. The question is: What is work? This may seem basic, irrelevant or even nonsensical. It is simple and profound question. Its power lies in the fact that work constitutes about 30 – 50 percent of our waking hours and yet most people have never stopped to look critically at this activity. This blindness generates a lot of suffering and waste in the workplace, home and the community. I believe that a full engagement with this question brings vitality, aliveness, and outstanding results. My own history of work is a complicated, somewhat dark story. I grew up in a family where work reigned supreme. My parents worked at an ambitious, punishing pace. Work cast a long, heavy shadow in our house leaving little room for play and joy. On the other hand, the dominant mood around work in my community, with its history of enslavement and poverty, was resentment, sullenness, resignation and even apathy. I arrived into adulthood caught between these two extremes. I worked long hours with a single-minded focus, which left me feeling exhausted, resentful, and trapped. I awoke to the reality that I was caught in a downward spiral of work success-suffering about 10 years ago, when my assistant wondered out loud what the impact my drive at work was having on my young daughter. She jolted me out of my blindness and was the catalyst for my own personal transformation. Today my work is a source of energy and inspiration for me and others around me. But this is not so for most people. Many have punishing schedules and responsibilities that leave them drained of the energy and vitality that is needed to take care of their spirit, health, and family. Many feel stuck or overlooked and unable to make the contribution that they truly desire. This manifests as resentment, disengagement, and apathy. Many feel anxious, tired, and stressed out and unaware of the cost that sustained levels of stress and disengagement have on their health, life and death. This is neither a personal nor private matter. Its impact extend way beyond the office or workplace into family and community spaces. Its consequences include poor employee engagement and morale, low productivity, high staff turnover, withered or disrupted familial bonds, substance abuse, etc. I have been helping people, first in my inner circle and then professional circle turn around their experience of work in order to make bigger contributions, live more fulfilling lives, have more joy and ease. The results have been remarkable. I have dedicated myself to helping people re-imagine and re-think what is work and then re-design how to work and live. The question ‘what is work?’ is a powerful first step towards a life that includes the utilitarian benefits of work, and opens up a doorway to full-bodied aliveness, meaning and ultimate purpose. And given that most of us spend more than 2000 hours per year in work, this is a tremendous opportunity and blessing.
