meaningful work

Why I’m Writing About Justice on My Business Blog

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Like many of you, current events leave me searching my heart for the right words, the right tone, the right course of action, and the right response to injustice in our culture. On occasion (e.g. here and here), I have used my business blog as a platform.

I have settled on two rules for this: (1) Business blogging must tie back to the work; it should not become a platform for either ranting or navel-gazing. (2) When my writing invokes others’ pain, it must be motivated by a sincere desire to help. The point is to share my expertise and perspective to alleviate suffering, not the other way around.

These two rules can coexist logically, I hope, because I have aligned my business model with my values.

Speaking out for justice aligns with my business strategy. This is a good thing.

Truth be told, I worry sometimes about limiting my client pool. However, I am determined that the normal anxiety of business development will not warp my values or my vision. It’s simple, really: I want to work with clients who share my concern for justice.

Social justice, racial justice, economic justice, LGBTQ justice, food justice, sexual justice, environmental justice, international justice, intersectional justice. Justice for the elderly; justice for youth. Justice for the differently abled. Justice for all.

Once I put my brave face on, I see this more clearly.

Marketing 101: know your best-fit clients.

These are the clients who will most benefit from your particular services, who will value your particular contribution, and for whom you know you can do great work — based on your particular acumen.

My unique background–in management and as a trained ethicist–differentiates me from other coaches. My best-fit clients want a coach who will support their values and ambition for impact, while also propelling their professional growth. They are business executives, nonprofit leaders, educators, artists, and individuals in transition. They walk many paths, and I walk my own as their coach. Together, we leverage their talents for positive impact — in their lives, their organizations, and the wider world.

Why do I write about justice on my business blog? My mission is to empower others to align their work with their values. My goal is to lead by example.

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Advice That Rocks: Get Outside

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This 1974 gem from Robert Palmer perfectly evokes the ennui of the modern professional worker. The lyrics describe the frustration of being stuck, with no way forward but the slog.1getoutside The tempo and Palmer’s buttery vocals add a tangible feeling to the song’s intentionally depleted energy. Best of all, Palmer offers the perfect antidote:

Get outside.

As it turns out, Palmer was way ahead of his time. Contemporary scientists would approve. Give him a listen, and consider these benefits of the great outdoors:

  • Outdoor time counteracts the negative health impacts of prolonged sitting and Vitamin-D deficiency (two markers of office work). 2AsapSCIENCE, “What if You Stopped Going Outside?”
  • Observing nature counteracts what psychologists call “directed attention fatigue.” When you return to your desk, you will be less distracted, less irritable, and less impulsive. 3Rebecca Clay, American Psychological Association, “Green Is Good for You.”
  • Time observing nature correlates with improved attention to detail. 4Rebecca Clay, American Psychological Association, “Green Is Good for You.”
  • Nature walks decrease activity in the subgenual prefrontal cortex, the part of the brain responsible for brooding. 5Gretchen Reynolds, New York Times, “How Walking in Nature Changes the Brain.”
  • Time in nature correlates strongly with enhanced creative problem-solving. 6University of Utah, “Nature Nurtures Creativity.”

Trust the science, and get outside — on behalf of your physical health, your psychological wellbeing, and your performance at work.

The world outside your office is simply irresistible.7Sometimes a pun just calls out to you.

Concept music. Music background with headphones and musical note

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The #1 Question to Ask About Your Work

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I write this in the wake of horrible violence, yet again, in my country. Last night, snipers killed 5 police officers at what should have been a peaceful protest against bloodshed. Our nation is deeply troubled by cycles of violence, both individual and systemic. Civil discourse has degraded into partisan bullying, and everyone is heartbroken. You know this. I know this. But what do we do?

Let’s turn that question inward. What do you do? 

Seriously. What do you do with your time and energy each day? What is your work?

These are not easy questions, ethically speaking. In fact, they are decidedly uneasy. As you consider them, I propose that you employ a concept from just war theory. The just war tradition has been used for centuries by heads of state and other political leaders to make sense of right and wrong in the context of war. It has been extremely influential in world history.1Learn more about the content and history of just war theory here, and learn about pacifist ethics here. However, it interests me today because of its framework.

Specifically, just war theory unravels two distinct aspects of war-making and sets clear ethical parameters for each. The two aspects are jus ad bellum, which governs the decision to go to war, and jus in bello, which governs conduct in war. I see this framework as useful for examining the ethics of work because it untangles two important threads of consideration: major strategic decisions and in-the-trenches tactics.

Here are analogous categories for the ethics of work:

Strategic:

  • What is my profession?
  • Whom do I work for?
  • What is my organization’s mission?
  • What is the broad impact of my profession and organization?

Tactical:

  • How do I conduct myself at work?
  • Am I learning as much as I can, to do the best work that I can?
  • Am I practicing self-care to support engagement and energy?
  • What are the practical ethics of my profession? Do I know them and hold myself accountable?
  • What are the impacts of my specific, day-to-day decisions?

Surely, both of the categories above are paramount to ethical work. We need more people (you! me!) to choose professions and organizations that make positive impacts on the world. We also need to work ethically and earnestly within those contexts. What we learn from the just war framework is that both sets of conditions — the strategic and the tactical — are necessary. Either/or is inadequate.

I urge you to examine how closely your answers align with your personal values, your philosophical and religious commitments, your family’s collective mission, and your desire to DO SOMETHING in light of our shared struggles. Find the support you need as you make the changes you should (and surely we all must change).

What you do with your time is your impact on the world.

Let me say that again: what you do with your time IS your impact on the world. You likely spend 40, 50, 60 or even more hours at work — especially if you factor in commuting, travel frequently, or work as a caregiver. If you are fortunate enough to choose your work (and too many aren’t), you have a responsibility to choose wisely and a responsibility to go about it honestly.  Bring your values into the equation, rather than compartmentalizing work vs. life.

“What do you do?” is classic small-talk, but it shouldn’t be. It’s the most important thing we can ask ourselves as we grapple with the dark and difficult. Honest answers will begin to shed a little light.

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1. ↑ Learn more about the content and history of just war theory here, and learn about pacifist ethics here.

Laugh Your Way to Meaningful Work

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I love satire. It cuts to the heart of matters, and it makes me laugh. So, you can imagine how thrilled I was to see McSweeney’s tackling an issue that I feel strongly about — meaningful work (or, more to the point, meaningless work):

Despite the business being obscenely profitable, our office is overcrowded, we are underpaid, and our work almost certainly supports fracking, heart disease, and the blatant exploitation of the poor. In recent months, it has occurred to me that this makes what I do, at best, completely void of meaning and, at worst, totally amoral. In short, my life has no meaning… but, have you tried the new toaster?
If this hits too close to home, you can do one of two things. Either laugh it off and proceed, or…

Let the satire do its full work, which is both to make you laugh and to convey criticism. It should leave you chuckling, but uneasily, wondering, how did this happen? And, how can I change it?

 

How did this happen? 

In one of three ways:

(1) Though you are not actually manipulated by perks like shiny new toasters, you do bear the paradoxical burden of your compensation and benefits. Golden handcuffs are real — and really tight. They stand between too many people and meaningful work.

(2) You are smart, hard-working, and an expert in your field. You care intensely about everything you do at work, pouring intelligence and energy into each task and decision — whether small or large, meaningful or meaningless.

These favorable qualities propelled you to your current position. However, you bring this intensity to every situation and task, indiscriminately. In doing so, you rob yourself of the energy and time required for discernment and the work that really matters.

(3) The likeliest culprit — some combination of both.

 

How can you change it?

Laugh (heartily!), but don’t laugh it off. Channel that self-deprecation into a decision to prioritize your impact goals.

Since you are already smart and hard-working, this doesn’t mean finding new time in the day. Instead, you must redirect your existing resources towards more meaningful goals. This requires introspection, careful discernment, and re-prioritization.

It is likely that the process will also entail some risk — financial, professional, and perhaps even emotional. Be clear on your tolerance for that, as well as the return that you can reasonably expect. To that end, have a trustworthy person in your corner, who will both challenge you and respect your boundaries.

Laughing it off may be easy, but it isn’t a strategy. It leaves you as restless as ever and does nothing to improve your professional footprint. By contrast, self-examination and change are difficult. They promise valuable returns not only for your work satisfaction, but also for your legacy — and for the positive impact you will make on the world.

 

Let’s be real: this is a fortunate problem.

Many, many people suffer extreme poverty, unemployment, under-education and other hardships that make the challenge of meaningful work a privileged one. In that light, the “paradoxical burden” of golden handcuffs seems superficial.

However, this gulf is all the more reason to leverage educations and opportunities wisely. We owe it to ourselves, our communities, and the wider world.

 

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10 Ideas To Free You From Your Desk

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From time to time, your office will feel stale. Maybe even oppressive. You may be procrastinating, in need of vacation, butting heads with your boss, or just drained by fluorescent lights.

Whatever the reason, recognize your restlessness for what it is. Don’t deny or judge it — just flip the script by changing your routine.

Try a change of scenery.

Hit the library. Libraries are free, quiet, and designed to enhance focus. While you’re there, take a few minutes to wander the stacks and soak up some literary inspiration.

Grab a cup. Coffeeshops offer soothing background noise, free wifi and unlimited caffeine. Need I say more?

Try co-working. Co-working studios have transformed my work more than once. In fact, I’m writing from one right now. They typically offer modern aesthetics, entrepreneurial energy, and a variety of workspaces (mine has carrels, sofas, shared desks, reading nooks, conference rooms, and outdoor seating).

Work from home. Treat yourself to a day at home, complete with your favorite tunes and your stretchy pants. Seek out the brightest room in your house — take advantage of that natural light while you can.

Reserve your office conference room. Can’t pull away for a half or whole day? Reserve your organization’s conference room for a window of time and escape from distraction right down the hall.

No laptop? No problem. 

Cultivate a reading list. Maintain a folder of articles and either print or bookmark them for easy access. (Bonus points for actual books.) If you think can’t afford to  slow down for this, you are wrong. Very wrong. You can’t afford not to.

Schedule a walking meeting or call. Stay alert for meetings that will not require note-taking. In my experience, this works best when your teams are reporting on status and for informal discussions with a close colleague. Do you sometimes find yourself pacing in your office? Take that nervous energy to the streets.

Schedule email sessions, and hit a park bench with your phone. This serves the dual purpose of removing you from your desk and imposing better email discipline. Turn off your email client in the interim. (I know, this one feels impossible. All the more reason to try it.)

Keep a running list of tasks that you do better offline. In addition to reading, my offline list includes outlining, theoretical work, reviewing client notes, proofreading, and task management. Grab your notebook and relocate.

Are you goal-setting regularly? You should. Goal-setting requires a fresh perspective, so it is tailor-made for unlikely settings. Try a sunny patio, a yoga mat, or even a bar stool. Wrap your week by reflecting on accomplishments and setting the next week’s focus. Allow yourself extra time at the end of the month and quarter to consider upcoming projects, performance review goals, and personal aspirations.

The idea is to experiment.

These ideas are low-risk, but substantial enough to alleviate the grind.  Try one for a re-engagement hack, or incorporate them all to revitalize your work life. If your otherwise awesome job lacks flexibility, discover alternative spaces within your organization. Keep your manager abreast of where you will be and why.

Whatever you do, challenge the assumption that you must be tethered to your desk or computer. Get off the treadmill and take a walk in the woods.

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