Sunday 29 April 2012

令工作更有意义|比尔•巴奈特|哈佛商业评论

译者 Moose

Work is a financial necessity for almost everyone, along with the sacrifices work sometimes demands. It can be drudgery. But work also can be fun and exciting. The competition can be energizing. Work can be an important and positive part of our lives.

 工作作为经济来源是几乎每个人都需要的,有时候工作还需要人们做出牺牲。工作可能单调沉闷。但是工作也可以是有趣的、令人兴奋的。竞争可能会激发人的斗志。工作可以成为生活中非常重要的和积极的部分。

I learned a lot about this from Amy Wrzesniewski and her work with job crafting (PDF). She describes three attitudes about work — what she calls jobs, careers, and callings. These three attitudes can indicate how satisfied individuals are in the workplace. Identifying your own outlook toward work can help you define what you need — or want — in your professional life.

 我从艾米•瑞兹尼沃斯基 (Amy Wrzesniewski) 和她的有关“工作职业”的工作中学到了很多这方面的知识。她描述了对于工作的三种态度—她将它们称作工作、职业和使命。这三种态度可以说明个人在工作场所的满意程度如何。识别出自己对于工作的见解可以帮助你定义在职业生涯中需要(或者是想要)什么。

People with a "jobs" mindset are working for the money and contain their time at work. All of the people I've known with this attitude tend to be dissatisfied, finding little meaning in what they do. They also are generally looking for something new.

 有着“工作”心态的人为了金钱而工作,并且抑制在工作上花费的时间。我认识的所有具有这种态度的人都倾向于对工作不满意,他们在自己做的事情中找不到工作的意义。 一般来说,他们都还在寻找些新的事情。

Careerists work for advancement, pay, and prestige. I've seen careerists with widely different levels of happiness and satisfaction. If they think they're "winning," they're happy. But others are concerned they're not advancing at the pace they want, or they're not in the role they deserve. While not entirely dissatisfied, they often wonder whether they're being treated fairly or if there's something better.

 职业人为了晋升、薪酬和声望而工作。我见到过很多职业人,他们的快乐和满意程度广泛地分布于不同的水平。如果他们认为他们“赢了”,他们就会很高兴。但是其他一些人认为他们没有以自己希望的步伐速度得到发展,或者他们没有获得自己应得的角色。虽然并不完全满意,这些人常常想知道他们是否获得了公平的对待,或者是否还有更好的机会。

But people with callings are different. They see their work as a positive end in itself. They feel good about what they're doing. They give more to their work. They get more from it. And here's a secret about people with callings: Not only are they happy and fulfilled, they're often very successful, sometimes bringing financial rewards.

 但是具有使命感的人则不同。他们将工作本身视为积极的目标。他们对自己做的事情感觉非常好。他们对工作付出的更多。他们从工作中得到的也更多。有关具有使命感的人的一个秘密是:他们不但非常快乐和满足,他们也常常是非常成功的,有时候这会带来经济上的奖励。

Individuals with callings differ because of what they prioritize in their work. Their goals are distinctive in three ways:

 具有使命感的人是不同的,因为他们对工作因素的优先顺序排列与其他人不同。他们的目标在以下三个方面与众不同:

1. They emphasize service. People with callings put a higher priority on helping others. Some are guided by the kind of lofty purpose that's associated with leaders in religion, public service, or charity work. Others operate their businesses to serve their markets in ways that make customers better off.

 1. 他们强调服务。具有使命感的人将帮助他人放在更高的优先顺序考虑。一些人被某种崇高的目的所指引,这通常与宗教、公共服务或慈善工作的领袖相关联。其他人则以令客户受益的方式来经营他们的生意,服务市场。

Brian (names have been changed) is a good example. After finishing his MBA, he got a well-paid position with a socially conscious mutual fund. He liked the fund's purpose, but he felt little connection between what he did and his desire to improve the planet. Then he had an idea — to provide a new category of food product that would improve diets. Even though his second baby was about to arrive, he took the risk to make this happen. He left the fund to found his own company, knowing he'd be living on his savings. Brian came to life. A decade later, with his products on many retail shelves, Brian remains excited about what he's doing, how he spends his days, and how it benefits people. It's a calling.

 布莱恩(化名)就是一个很好的例子。MBA 毕业以后,他得到了一个报酬丰厚的职位,获得社会关注的共同基金的扶持。他很喜欢该基金的目的,但是他觉得他做的事情和他渴望为地球带来的改善之间几乎没有联系。然后他想到了一个主意—提供一个新的食物产品的分类,这些分类中的食物产品可以改善饮食。即使他的第二个孩子即将出世,他还是甘愿冒险去做这件事情。他离开这家基金,开办了他自己的公司,他知道他将靠自己的积蓄生活。布莱恩获得了新生。十年以后,他的产品摆上了很多零售商的货架,布莱恩对自己做的事情、他如何度过那些时光,以及他所做的事情如何令人们受益感到很兴奋。这就是一种使命。

2. They emphasize craftsmanship. People with callings prioritize what I call craftsmanship. They want to make things happen and to be excellent in their fields, not just because of potential growth in their company but because they believe those things are intrinsically worthwhile.

 2. 他们强调技艺 (craftsmanship)。具有使命感的人将我称之为技艺的因素放在优先顺序考虑。他们希望做这些事情,并且在他们从事的领域做到优秀,并不仅仅是因为他们的公司有潜在的成长空间,而且因为他们相信这些事情从本质上来说是值得去做的。

Take manufacturing CEO Steve. Steve tightly focuses his personal value proposition on what he does best — leading manufacturing companies that need significant improvement in operations. Steve spots the complexity in operational processes before most others do. In a senior position, he's had to learn how to become more than just a thinker; he's learned how to mobilize and how to teach. That's the only kind of position he'll consider — both to continue his high performance and to deepen his expertise. Steve's a craftsman.

 以制造行业的 CEO 史蒂夫为例来说。史蒂夫严格地将他的个人价值观注入到他最擅长的领域—领导需要在操作方面进行重大改进的制造公司。史蒂夫先于绝大多数的其他人注意到了操作流程的复杂性。在高级职位上,他必须学习如何不仅仅作为一个思考者;还要学习如何动员大家,以及如何教授他人。这是他会考虑的唯一类型的职位—继续他的高效业绩和深化他的专门领域的技能这两者兼而有之。史蒂夫是一位工匠。

3. They de-emphasize money. In making career decisions, people with callings push money to the background, instead choosing to focus on what a new role has to offer beyond its monetary rewards. No one I've known with a calling has had income as one of their top career objectives.

 3. 他们并不强调金钱。在进行职业抉择的时候,具有使命感的人将金钱放在脑后,相反,他选择关注新角色必须提供些什么,这一点要超出其金钱上的回报。我所认识的具有使命感的人里面没有人会将收入作为职业目标的第一要素。

Nathan's emphasis on service and accomplishment replaced his need for a significant paycheck. His childhood interest in education grew stronger in college when he saw the challenges facing children in urban schools. He became a teacher in a low income school and was excited to see the impact he was having on his students and their families. He declined promotions in the school system that would have increased his pay but taken him away from these students. He only moved to headquarters when the new role offered broad influence in teaching across multiple schools. Two years later, the school district promoted him to principal at the young age of 29.

 内森强调服务和成就,这些因素取代了他对于丰厚薪水的需要。在大学时,当他看到在城市的学校中面对孩子所面临的挑战时,他孩提时代对于教育的兴趣变得更加强烈。他成为一所低收入学校的教师,看到他对于他的学生和学生的家庭所产生的影响,他非常兴奋。在学校系统希望增加他的报酬,但是将他从这些学生中间调离的时候,他拒绝了这些晋升。只有在新的角色提供在多个学校间教书的机会,可以令他产生广泛的影响时,他才转到了总部。两年以后,学校所在区将他提升为校长,那时他很年轻,只有 29 岁。

Most people want the job satisfaction that comes with having a calling. If you see your work as merely a job or career, ask yourself if your outlook or priorities need to change. One route may be to redefine your tasks (PDF) or the way you think about your work to put greater emphasis on service and on craftsmanship. If you can reconfigure your work like this, you may find a calling or at least greater meaning and happiness. If you can't, then it may be time to think about finding another position.

 大多数想要获得工作满意度的人都是具有使命感的人。如果将工作仅仅视为一份工作或职业,那么问问自己是否需要改变对于工作的见解,或者是改变不同工作因素的优先顺序。其中一个思路可能是重新定义任务或者是思考工作的方式,这样可以更加强调服务和技艺。如果可以这样重新构建自己的工作,那么也许可以找到使命感,或者至少可以在工作中找到更多的意义和快乐。如果不能这样的话,也许是时候考虑换一份新工作了。

What else should you emphasize — or de-emphasize — to make your work more satisfying?

 若要令工作更加满意,还有什么其他因素是应该强调(或者是不予强调)的呢?



from 译言-每日精品译文推荐 http://article.yeeyan.org/view/280349/268696