Doing Work That You Love

By Yanna Solace Adofina

The word work has been defined by the Merriam-Webster dictionary as, “to perform work or fulfill duties regularly for wages or salary”. According to Etymonline, the word comes from a fusion of Old English wyrcan "prepare, perform, do, make, construct, produce; strive after" and Old English wircan (Mercian) "to operate, function, set in motion,". While the concept of work has been around for the longest time, it was only during the nineteenth century that the concept of job has permeated into our consciousness. No one can pinpoint exactly when the transition from the former to the latter has taken place, but some say its roots come from the Management Theory set upon by Max Weber. According to the German sociologist, he believes that bureaucracy was the most efficient way to run businesses, with a clear set of rules and regulations, firm distribution of power through a hierarchical structure, and achievement-based advancement.

Now that all the formalities are out of the way, it doesn’t seem that bad, does it? We’re all used to calling our work jobs anyway, and on paper it sounds fair that everything is in its place, like a well-oiled factory machine churning out sweaters 24/7. But once we truly dive deep into the concepts of a bureaucratic system, it feels downright depressing ---- like you can feel yourself struggling to get out of bed and crying (inward or outward, no judgement here) that you have to face another day of pressure and stress, and continue to do so for the next forty to fifty years. Believe me, I have been there; no amount of iced coffee, scented candles, or ten-step skin care routine can cure it. But there is hope.

For the uninitiated, this might be a new-fangled term ----- but for the last few decades, the concept of new work has been gaining traction among young startups and open-minded companies. New work runs on the premise of “working to live instead of living to work.” Also called “work 4.0”, it delineates conditions for how you can work and live in a society greatly operating on digitalisation and globalisation. Social philosopher and Princeton professor Frithjof Bergmann founded the new work movement during the late 1970’s, as a remedy to the typical work system, which he thought of as an old system rooted in capitalism that no longer works post-Industrial Revolution. He saw new work as eye-level leadership, sincere appreciation and balanced, employee-centered work. Free spaces for creativity and self-organization are being championed, because rigid working methods of the past are no longer working today, let alone the future. Though still important, profit creation is not the singular or topmost driving factor of this principle. It is more about being in the business of fulfilling real human needs.

Unfortunately (or fortunately, depending on how you see things), there is no instructional manual on how to do New Work, because this philosophy is not a standardized process, but a continuous transformation in the culture and leadership point-of-view. The current young working generations are striving for a sense of their tasks. The main goal here is purpose. According to Frithjof, “If you feel that the work you do serves some powerful, interesting, and inspiring purpose, then it becomes quite easy to do. ..if you create real alternatives, people choose to do work that helps other people, that makes a contribution. The fact that people, when given a choice, want to do work with a purpose represents a source of social energy that is the equivalent of the steam engine. You can rethink the economy and much else about our culture if that turns out to be true.

”Imagine how much positive change we can do in the world once everyone is doing something purposeful in their lives. Imagine how our way of life could be for the better if there is no competition, but collaboration in the work that we do with love and joy ---- just because IT MAKES SENSE. Isn’t it more satisfying to do something that you actually like doing, and get paid for it? There would be no need to wait for retirement or a long vacation just to pursue your passion. There are countless possibilities with this new philosophy. The best thing about new work is, you can start without spending a single cent. 

Join us next week, as we launch a four-part deep dive series on how lifelab does New Work.