Which of these four work categories describes you?

One thing I’ve concluded about the study of happiness is that it’s important to notice which principles are universal, and which ones aren’t.

For example, a universal principle is that people are made happy by an “atmosphere of growth.” (That’s one element of my First Splendid Truth.)

But how people achieve that atmosphere of growth varies tremendously. One person gets it from traveling; another, by raising children; another, by learning a new software program; another, by renovating the basement.

So to say that traveling is a key to happiness, or that traveling is a big waste of time, is foolish.

Along the same lines, I was thinking about the differences among people and their approach to work. Here are four proposed work styles:

Answering the call
One kind of work is a “calling.” A calling is very difficult to resist, and indeed, people with a calling sometimes find themselves working for no pay. People have callings for many different fields: science, math, music, art, literature, film, acting, finance, medicine, design, religion…I recently learned a fascinating term, a service heart, which describes the calling that people feel to provide personal service to others.

One problem with a calling is that sometimes a person wishes that he or she didn’t feel a particular call. For example, some callings are very well paid, and/or highly respected, and others aren’t. It’s very hard to get paid as a poet; it’s much easier to be paid as a doctor. It’s very painful to give up a calling, even if you want to give it up.

Climbing the ladder
Some people have a lot of ambition, but no particular calling. They want to work hard and be successful, but aren’t attached to a particular field. They gravitate to jobs that suit their skills and allow for advancement.

Some people assume that those climbing the ladder have sold their souls, or are desperately unhappy, because they work in a field like accounting or corporate law. But that’s not necessarily so.

Ladder-climbers don’t have the urgent motivation felt by people with a calling, but they can derive huge satisfaction from work. If you know a lot about any field, and especially if you’re good at it, you tend to find it fascinating.

Keeping busy
Some people are energetic but not ambitious. They don’t have a particular calling, and they’re not particularly worried about success, but they like the bustle and gratification of working hard. They can happily direct their energies toward a wide variety of goals.

Hanging out
“How sweet it is to do nothing” – for some people. Some folks enjoy leisure a great deal; they can enjoy themselves without any particular work to do. They don’t seem to work at much, just live their lives.

I talked to a friend about these categories, and he added a fifth: Waiting for instructions. These folks are between stages, trying to figure out what to do next.

What’s the significance of these work categories for happiness?

The First Splendid Truth holds that to think about happiness, you must think about:
 feeling good
 feeling bad
 feeling right
 in an atmosphere of growth.

The different work categories would play out differently for happiness, because of the different satisfactions they bring — also, depending on how a person’s fate plays out.

And there are different kinds of happiness. Who is happier? The perfectionist, anxious artist who lives to paint and who agonizes over any critical word? Or the beloved receptionist who keeps the office working perfectly, from 8:59 am until 5:01 pm?

Another happiness universal: know yourself. I was on a track to “climb the ladder” of law. I was doing very well, and I enjoyed it. But when I was clerking for Justice Sandra Day O’Connor, I realized I really wanted to be a writer. Looking back, it was clear that I’d wanted to be a writer for a long time, but I’d ignored that call.

Different people, different happiness – linked by the universal principle that their happiness will be determined by the First Splendid Truth.

I’m still mulling over these categories. Do I have it right? What am I missing?

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Comments

[tracy]

Hi, I'm a first time commenter, so I hope I'm not saying too much.

Perhaps this is the point, but the thing that jumps out of this discussion for me is that even if you know what work style fits you, it's not necessarily easy or obvious to find a job that fits that style and/or fits you. Also, and I've been thinking about this a lot, is it possible to always be happy with working - regardless of your style and if you're in a job that fits it? Your styles are very cheerfully put, and I applaud you, but there are advantages and drawbacks to each of these styles, and finding the corresponding job, which would also affect happiness.

[Evan]

Happiness includes lots of things I think.

There are probably different depths - when I'm say that I'm happy when I look back at may life this is different to the happiness from finding a good parking spot.

There may be another kind of work, or a different dimension to them all - mastering a skill set. This may apply to artists but just as much to engineers or accountants.

[timmy]

"It’s very painful to give up a calling, even if you want to give it up."

That line was really powerful, it resonated with me.

[Tim North]

I can say from personal experience that aligning your work with your preferred work style leads to *great* happiness.

I fit the "hanging out" work type perfectly, so ten years ago I gave up working for other people. Since then I've pottered about in a home office doing around one day of consulting a week, and I've never been happier. :-)

[lillibet]

Sometimes I think that at different stages of your life, different work styles can suit you better. What I mean is, you might start out in one work style (the ladder climbing one for example) and it may be ultimately fulfilling at that time in your life and lead to a lot of happiness. However down the track as your life changes, commitments alter and interests mature, you might well find that another work style fits you better and gives you a higher level of happiness at that point in your life.

[Naomi]

this has been one of the most useful posts in a while, thanks gretchen . it is good to think about the things that drive other people

[Solomon]

I think I'm closest to "keeping busy". I'd rather have time to smell the flowers than earn ridiculous amounts of money.

[Sarah]

Gretchen, I'm not sure if you are willing to talk more about the transition from climbing the ladder lawyer to writer. I know you've spoken about it on this blog, but I'd be interested in learning more about your decision and the process that you went through.

I think generally I am a ladder-climber, but right now I feel that I am waiting for instructions.

[Christy]

One of the most often heard, undervalued calls is to education. One the whole, education, especially teaching, is not considered a profession in the way that others (medicine, law, business) are. It's easy to think that because we all went to school, we all know what education is about and could do it "as a fall back." Until we stop seeing education that way, educators will be underpaid, undervalued, and treated as less than professionals.

I answered the call anyway. I'm happy, frustrated sometimes, but happy.

[LP]

I think these are fine categories -- I'd also note that they are not necessarily tied to intelligence, talent, or any other measure of one's 'potential'. They are a lifestyle decision, and don't require justification ("I'm just working this keeping-busy type job while I write my novel," "I'm just climbing the ladder until I make enough money to retire and do nothing"). There's alot of pernicoius messaging to young people in high school and college about the relative worth of these different lifestyle tracks.

[Ella]

This post is very thought-provoking. As a classic ladder-climber who is currently feeling beset by ambivalence for the first time in my career (as in, I did all this climbing and I'm not sure I like where it's taken me), I'm feeling very confused and a little unhappy about the situation.

[EAC]

Where are the "Because they have tos?" For many people, there is no real drawn-out choice or contemplation involved. I think we are really talking about people privileged with choice, and education about their different options. It's fine to talk about, but it's not how I think much of the world's work gets done.

[Audie Perove]

I would like to add a different thought to the mindset of happiness.
I feel that if you get happy first personal and financial success will follow.
Try it on for a day and see how it feels and notice the changes within yourself and others that you have come in contact with.
You might just like what you find.

http://NetWebMarketer.com/audie

[Audie Perove]

I would like to add a different thought to the mindset of happiness.
I feel that if you get happy first personal and financial success will follow.
Try it on for a day and see how it feels and notice the changes within yourself and others that you have come in contact with.
You might just like what you find.

http://NetWebMarketer.com/audie

[Jennifer]

In response to this statement: "I think we are really talking about people privileged with choice, and education about their different options." I would have to say that I thought that for a loooong time. I thought that I had no choice - "poor pitiful me." Once I realized that we all do have a choice, my life changed and became beautiful. That's not to say that we don't all start from different points or that we don't have struggles along the way, just that realizing we have a choice changes our lives forever - that is if we act on the choices that we LOOK for. It may take some work to find that choice that you are satisfied with, you may even have to make it up, but the choice is there.

As far as the post, I do agree that an "atmosphere of growth" is necessary, but the problem I see with most of these styles is that in these cases people are looking outside of themselves for happiness. When a person does that they will always end up disatisfied and disappointed. And for those who just hang out, well, either they have set their priorities in order and are spending time with the people that are important or they will get to the end of their life and ask "What have I done with my life?" What I have seen is that REAL happiness always comes from within and is never dependent on outside circumstances, although we might derive certain "satisfaction" from doing certain things and using our talents.

Also, what I have seen is that unless someone has/finds a purpose, that is infinitely bigger than themselves, to throw themselves into they will float through life aimlessly and disappointed. That could be as simple as showing love to everyone around them. That will vary among each person. What I have seen is that this purpose is critical and that if you define a purpose life will never "just happen." I hope that doesn't sound contradictory to what I said earlier because it is not.

[Shareen]

I think there may be 2 more categories.

The first one is "Validation seeker" or "Approval junkie". For some I think it doesn't matter what the task is, as long as they can accomplish it to some level of expertise that people recognize them as being "the go-to person" they are extremely happy.

The other category... I think would be the "Innovators” these people absolutely must have the ability to change things for, hopefully, the better. It doesn't seem to matter what the IT is, they always have an idea, and a temporary passion, to "fix it” Temporary only in that it lasts as long as the innovation process. Once done they move on to the next thing. Maybe this is just a version of the keep busy, but I think inventors and entrepreneurs don't really fit any of the other models, but do fit Innovators.

[Nellie]

"...some callings are very well paid, and/or highly respected, and others aren’t. It’s very hard to get paid as a poet; it’s much easier to be paid as a doctor."

It might be easier to earn money as a doctor, but money doesn't make us happy, does it ?

Also, I think an 'Innovators' category is a great idea. I know a number of people who don't fit into the other categories and the common feature is their driven by a constantly inquiring mind.

[Karl Staib - Your Work Happiness Matters]

I think I have a little of all of them in me. But the one I have most is probably answering the call. My blog will attest to that. I was put on this earth to help people work happier, hopefully I'm fulfilling that dream, just a bit more each day.

[Edna]

This is a great blog and expressed some of the thoughts I've had about work attitudes. For over twenty years I worked as executive director for a non profit agency. It fit the calling category ... For quite a few years it was very rewarding but after a while it became a hard "job" because of dealing with government contracts and funding issues. The fun was gone but the obligation stayed until I actually burned out and took an early retirement. I did love helping people with disabilities but I was so sick of the lack of funds that made it hard to keep good staff.

Now that I am retired I feel I am finally able to fulfill another calling ... that of writing. It is fun and yet it is a strict form of "work" to meet deadlines and finish the editing of long awaited first book. I am going to talk about a couple of your blogs on mine and perhaps send some people your way.

Thanks for an uplifting site.