Especificación de que la fianza permanecerá vigente en aquellos casos en que “El Cliente” otorgue prórrogas a “El Proveedor”

In Hebrew, the word for “work” (avoda) stems from the same root as the word for “slave” (eved). Most of us have no choice but to work for a living. Even if we do not need to work for our survival, we are enslaved by our nature: we are constituted to want to be happy, and to be happy we need to work.

However, being enslaved by the exigencies of life and by our constitution does not preclude the possibility that we can feel free. We experience freedom when we choose a path that provides us both meaning and pleasure. Whether or not our subjective expe- rience of work is of freedom depends on whether we choose to be slaves to material wealth or to emotional prosperity, slaves to others’ expectations or to our passions.

To make such choices, we might begin by asking some ques- tions of ourselves. Ask and you shall receive, say the Scriptures. When we ask questions, we open ourselves up to new quests and conquests: we see things we may not have seen before, discover paths that were previously obscured.

By posing a series of genuine questions, we challenge our assumptions, our conventional ways of thinking about what is possible in our lives: Am I happy at work? How can I become happier? Can I leave my job and fi nd something meaningful

Slave to

Happiness in the Workplace
●• 

and pleasurable? If I cannot aff ord to leave or, for one reason or another, do not want to leave, what can I do to make my work more enjoyable?

h e right employer can create conditions that are conducive to happiness. For example, research conducted by psychologist Richard Hackman illustrates that certain conditions can lead an employee to experience more meaning in her work. First, the work should draw out a variety of talents and skills; second, the employee should complete a whole task, from beginning to end, rather than play a minor role in the big picture; fi nally, the employee should feel that her work has a signifi cant impact on others. A manager who designs work that meets these conditions is likely to increase her employees’ profi ts in the ultimate currency.

As I discussed in Chapter , work by Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi illustrates how a challenging task that is neither too diffi cult nor too easy leads to higher levels of engagement; a manager who is mindful of the benefi ts of engagement—for both the employee and the organization—will more likely assign work that chal- lenges the employee to the right degree.

Think back to some of your favorite work experiences. What was it about the specii c projects or the work- place that made the experience a positive one?

We cannot, though, simply hope that the right job or right employer will be handed to us. We have to actively seek and create meaning and pleasure in the workplace. Blaming others—our par- ents, our teachers, our boss, or the government—may yield sympa- thy but not happiness. h e ultimate responsibility for fi nding the right job or creating the right conditions at work lies with us.

In some jobs it is possible to restructure work to meet the con- ditions necessary for the attainment of the ultimate currency. For

 •●
HAPPINESS APPLIED

example, we can experience fl ow by setting clear goals and chal- lenging ourselves even when our job does not require that we do so. We can assume more responsibility and seek higher levels of involvement in work that we fi nd interesting; we can take initia- tive and look for areas where we can contribute more to the orga- nization, moving to a diff erent department or getting involved in a new project. If, however, the setup of our job is such that it is impossible for us to feel interested and engaged, no matter how hard we try, then we might choose to look for an alternative source of income. While in some cases leaving our current work- place might not seem to be a feasible option, in most cases we can fi nd an alternative—a workplace that, beyond the hard currency necessary for our basic material needs, will provide us with the ultimate currency.

Committing to change within the workplace or looking for a new job can be frightening. However, change is necessary if we are stuck in a job that supplies us with little beyond our material needs. Had we found ourselves in a job that did not aff ord us our basic material needs, we would do everything in our power to change our predicament. So why do we set lower standards for ourselves when the ultimate currency—when our own happi- ness—is at stake? What we need if we are to implement change in our lives is courage. And courage is not about not having fear but

about having fear and going ahead anyway.

Hard currency and the ultimate currency are both necessary for our survival, and they need not be mutually exclusive. Moreover, because we often perform best at the things that we fi nd most engaging, pursuing those activities that provide us meaning and pleasure could actually lead to more quantifi able success in the long run. We naturally work harder at the things that we care about and are interested in—that we are passionate about. With-

Happiness in the Workplace
●• 

out passion, motivation wanes; with passion, motivation increases, and, over time, so does ability.

h e investment we make in our work cannot be determined merely by what we stand to gain or lose fi nancially. As the example of the emotionless robot illustrates, without having an emotional investment in our work, we ultimately lose interest. Emotions lead to motion—they are our fuel.