But the second reason can. Take a moment and try to understand the root cause. Work without pay is not a job, but work without motivation can certainly be one.This distinction between money and motivation is glaring, yet most employers structure their organizations as if the two things are synonymous. In 1976, economists Michael Jensen and William Meckling This has come to be known as principal-agent theory (or incentives theory), and is the foundational structure that most corporations are built upon today. Graeber calls these jobs “a form of paid employment that is so completely pointless, unnecessary, or pernicious that even the employee cannot justify its existence even though, as part of the conditions of employment, the employee feels obliged to pretend that this is not the case.”These are the jobs where you know you could do the work in 1-2 hours each day, yet you have to pretend you’re working for a whole 8-9 hours. For example, if you find out that your boss is a neurotic, micromanaging maniac, the hygiene factor of “supervisory relationship” will be missing, and you will be dissatisfied.Notice above that compensation was included as a hygiene factor, and not a motivator. The money we make from it is re-invested to help fund the BBC’s international journalism.If you spend your days in wasteful meetings, or send emails that create yet more worthless emails in an endless loop, you’ve likely asked yourself that very question.People from all walks of life have pondered the meaning of work—and some cultures have come up with some creative ways to define tasks that have little substance or social value.So if you think you’re merely paid to look busy, you’re not alone. You’re not supposed to wither away or die from ennui. Science backs up your need to believe in what you are doing at work. Well, if you’ve made that assumption, I’m going to one-up your assumption and assume that you’ve already forgotten that there are two things we need for job … I think we need to reevaluate what actually is useful about human labor. While it’s important to feel financially stable and work for a company with values you agree with, it is only through challenging and engaging work that can make you really love going there.In the case of the nonprofit worker that Christensen described earlier, his pay might be lower than he wanted, leading to some dissatisfaction (hygiene factor):But the meaning that he was getting from his work allowed for an increase in satisfaction due to the additive nature of motivators:In the case of a hypothetical banker with a pointless yet high-paying job, her hygiene factor of compensation is intact, leaving her water untouched:But the meaninglessness of the job is preventing any motivational factor from increasing her overall satisfaction with it:This results in an interesting situation where the lesser-paid nonprofit worker is more satisfied with his job than the higher-paid banker:When you see an illustration like that, it’s easy to assume that the lesson here is to quit your pointless job and do something that motivates you. When it’s the opposite, people are screaming at each other, they bully each other, they freak out over deadlines. He tries and tries, but every time he tries to quit they just give him a raise. That’s one reason I think the [original essay] piece hit such a chord. Archived. He just completely fell apart.The most important news stories of the day, curated by Post editors and delivered every morning.The most important news stories of the day, curated by Post editors and delivered every morning.Reporter covering leadership issues in the headlinesShare your feedback by emailing the author. Is yours one of them? Sort by. share. I think there’s nothing more important than understanding the world that we live in.He’s in the book.

This is why nurses spend so much time filling out forms, why schoolteachers do. 92% Upvoted. If you’re above it, you’re digging your job. For example, some of the hardest-working people on the planet are employed in nonprofits and charitable organizations. jobs, but this was not that common. A lot of people who are in middle management, in P.R., in consultancies — but also a lot of people who have jobs in administration or corporate law seem to feel that their jobs shouldn’t really exist.I was quite surprised. 6 comments. (He endorses universal basic income, but calls for even more fundamental economic and societal shifts. Some days you might even want to scream, “This job is pointless!”This is not an invalid feeling. Log in or sign up to leave a comment log in sign up. They earn a fraction of what they would in the private sector. At some point in your career, you’re likely to feel like you’re in a rut.



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