Anonyminity, Irrelevance & Immeasurement and Depressingly Easy

It's so simple it's hard! Some thoughts from 2 books on why it's good to be working to live and living to work:

1. Anonyminity -- one's work must be known by a higher authority.
-- otherwise a worker sees themselves as invisible, generic or anonymous

2. Irrelevance -- person must see that their job matters to someone, anyone.
-- must see connection between their work & satisfaction of some person(s)

3. Immeasurement -- need tangible means of accessing success or failure.
-- need to gauge their progress & level of contributions for themselves
-- need to see their own success or level of success by themselves.
-- cannot depend on the whims or opinions of another, even benevolent, person.
-- must know #1, Who their work helps, and #2, How their work helps them.
Big artists and performers can lead erratic, unhappy, unsatisfied lives because of
subtle fear of irrelevance.

(above) from The Three Signs of a Miserable Job: A Fable for Managers (And Their Employees) (J-B Lencioni Series)book written by Patrick Lencioni

PART II

(Below) from Depressingly Easy. Kelly Lambert in Scientific American Mind, Vol 19, No.4, pp.31-35; August-September 2008.

"our brains are programmed to derive a deep sense of satisfaction and pleasure when our physical effort produces something tangible, visible and...meaningful in gaining the resources necessary for survival

Our brains get reward in the brain's pleasure center from anticipating and executing complex tasks with our hands.
because "...[hands] allow us to gain control of our environment. ""[And]...we are predisposed to preferring hand movements that our ancestors needed for survival--those necessary for nuturing, cleaning, cooking, grooming, building shelter and farming."

From the book
Lifting Depression: A Neuroscientist's Hands-On Approach to Activating Your Brain's Healing Powerby Kelly Lambert 2008, Basic Books part of Perseus Books Group

also see http://www.kellylambert.com/note-p2.php