Why Are 85% of People Unhappy AND Disengaged at Work?
…are you one of the 15%?
Goal: Discuss why disengagement at work occurs and what you can do about it.
Reality of our current work places is that 85% of people are unhappy or disengaged with their job. That statistic is pretty scary.
Maybe the way we approach our work is all wrong?
One hundred years ago work was the way to survive. People slaved away on farms and in factories. The safety records of most industries were horrible. I remember seeing calendars with number of deaths per day for a company. People went to work to die. This is why average lifespans were at most 40 years.
One hundred years later lifespans are 75+ and climbing. All industries have gotten safer as more safety rules ere installed. So we have 35+ more years that have been added to our lifespans. The length of our lives is not the problem.
What is the problem?
In my opinion, the unhappiness in the workplace is due to two factors: lack of control and meaning. Let us work through those.
The lack of control is obvious to me. People are connected to their work 24 hours 7 days a week. They are not too far away from the phone or email even when they are on vacation. Rare are the people that will stick to their guns and not answer calls or emails during vacation.
I have received phone calls during vacation. I have received emails at 3 a.m. I have attended meeting with people while on vacation. That is unfortunately the norm.
Why?
We are selling our time for money. And indirectly the more time we give, we get rewarded with increases.
Money is nice BUT companies these days have become very disconnected from the people that they employ. By calling employees “associates” it creates a loose connection to that employee. It is not uncommon that when times get a little tough or the CEO needs to look good to Wall Street that the associate is shown the door.
This lack of control happens too often and eventually that leads to disengagement. The days when someone can work for a company for 40 years are gone. The loyally bridge has been bombed by the employers.
As much as control is an issue, the second reason for disengagement is a bigger problem. The lack of meaning in the work that people perform shows up as discontentment.
Looking for meaning in one’s work is a new phenomenon. I would say last 20+ years.
Is that fair?
It do not think it is fair to the employers. I have always loved executing my jobs BUT have never sought meaning in them. They are jobs and the bring interesting problems to solve for my employers and customers.
I am more than a job. I am more than a label placed by the HR department.
So where do I get my meaning filled?
This is where your outside interests create the meaning you want to find. Maybe you have a side hustle writing apps? Maybe you are an artist and paint one canvas per week? Maybe you are a YouTuber? Maybe you write for Medium.com? Maybe you just like spending time with your family and friends?
You have to look deep inside you and create opportunities that fulfil your meaning. Looking for an employer to create that for you is crazy. It is not in their thought process whether the work is meaningful to you. To an employer the work has to be required to be completed. Meaning is never attached to the work or to you. If it just happens for you then you are one of the 15%.
Not finding meaning in work is understandable. Not finding meaning outside of work is sad and can be corrected. It is up to you to do.
My seven cents….(this is what I earned from Medium.com for Nov. 2020)
I got to go…my future self alarm went off
Robert Trajkovski is professional with experience in leading people and projects in Steel/ Power, Refining, Chemicals, Industrial Gasses, Software, Consulting and Academia. He has worked for both owners and engineering companies. In addition, he has instructed 73+ courses at several institutions and often offers his courses for free on LinkedIn.
https://www.linkedin.com/in/roberttrajkovski/
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