The Map of Meaningful Work (2e): A Practical Guide to Sustaining our Humanity

by Marjolein Lips-Wiersma, Lani Morris

This book introduces the Map of Meaning which provides a clear, simple and profound framework of the dimensions and process of living and working meaningfully. The Map of Meaning is based on over 20 years' research into the insights and practice of ordinary people as they search for, lose and find meaning. Incorporating the ideas of philosophers, psychologists and sociologists, this book describes how human beings wrestle with, and answer, questions such as, "What gives my life and work meaning?", "How can I balance inspiration and reality and maintain positive momentum?" and "How do we integrate meaningfulness into our workplaces?". Innate human knowledge is captured in a practical model that makes understanding and working with issues of meaning clear and accessible to everyone. At an individual level this book helps people to define and stay in contact with what is most important to them as they grapple with the real problems of daily life. It shows how they can stay in charge of keeping the human search for meaning alive, especially in the face of the challenges that exist in organizational life. Because the dimensions of meaning are shared, the second half of the book focuses on how we can bring an awareness of what creates meaningful work into our thinking about the practice and design of organisations. The authors recognize that in the current economic context a simple, yet profound guide for humanity is essential, precisely because organizational life has become so intensely directed towards a singular economic goal. They argue that it is vital that people have an easy, powerful way to reclaim the significance of meaning in their working lives both individually and at a whole of organization level. Updated with new chapter material and case studies, this second edition offers profound insights for anyone who is interested in creating more meaning and purpose in work and organizations – from a CEO to a blue-collar worker or consultant. It is for those searching for ways to re-energize their roles or change their careers. It is for anyone who firmly believes that it must be possible to align our deeper life purposes with our daily actions in the workplace. It is for anyone who is committed to creating workplaces that support and enable the experience of work that feels worth doing.

214 pages, Paperback

Published November 9, 2017

Reviews

[Dave Manning · Rating 4 out of 5]

5-star content, 1.5 star readability. This was a fantastic book content-wise, and one I will refer back to countless times in my work as OD & strategy consultant, but it was just so damn hard to stay focused. I found myself only able to not check my phone or eat something for 7-10 minutes at a time. The content, again, 5++ stars, buy it for that alone, but it reads too much like an academic paper than a textbook or piece of business non-fiction (which is not surprising given the author's incredible academic record), but I wish it was more digestible cover to cover. Set a goal of maybe 15 pages a day, and take a few weeks to read it (despite its thin size), or else you'll lose joy quickly over something that is truly worth celebrating as a contribution to the literature. I recommend reading this interspersed with "The Infinite Game" by Simon Sinek (his only book worth reading).