Finding Meaning In Business

How do we find meaning and fulfillment in the work that we do? Even more importantly, how do we make a difference in this world through our work? Finding purpose at work is all-important. We spend 1/3 of our lives at work, on average 90,000 hours of our lifetime. When an individual, a team, or an organization has clarity of purpose, they can step forward with confidence knowing that the work they are doing matters, and that the time spent doing so makes a difference. As you read about Davin's twenty-year journey toward purpose, you'll become acquainted with the people and ideas that have shaped both his thinking on the power of purpose and his decision to share his passion with others. Davin's most sincere desire is to help you, the reader, realize the same satisfaction he has achieved as you do the work to discover your own purpose and that of your organization. Finding Purpose at Work is the blueprint that will guide you.

The hidden brain is the voice in our ear when we make the most important decisions in our lives—but we’re never aware of it. The hidden brain decides whom we fall in love with and whom we hate. It tells us to vote for the white candidate and convict the dark-skinned defendant, to hire the thin woman but pay her less than the man doing the same job. It can direct us to safety when disaster strikes and move us to extraordinary acts of altruism. But it can also be manipulated to turn an ordinary person into a suicide terrorist or a group of bystanders into a mob. In a series of compulsively readable narratives, Shankar Vedantam journeys through the latest discoveries in neuroscience, psychology, and behavioral science to uncover the darkest corner of our minds and its decisive impact on the choices we make as individuals and as a society. Filled with fascinating characters, dramatic storytelling, and cutting-edge science, this is an engrossing exploration of the secrets our brains keep from us—and how they are revealed.

Combining creative biblical interpretation, Christian moral reflection, and business expertise, Finding Meaning in Business is a thoughtful and thought-provoking look at how business leaders, professionals, and students can integrate a sense of calling into their careers and into the business world as a whole.

THE NEW YORK TIMES, WALL STREET JOURNAL, AND USA TODAY BESTSELLER! ADVANCE PRAISE FOR THE WHY OF WORK: "Principled, timely, and engaging, The Why of Work teaches that building a culture of abundance and common purpose is essential to organizational success." --Stephen R. Covey, bestselling author of 7 Habits of Highly Effective People "Will have a major impact on how individuals shape their attitude to work, how organizations create abundant cultures, and how leaders turn personal meaning into public good." --Jigmi Y. Thinley, Prime Minister of Bhutan "The Why of Work shows a better, different way to build and lead organizations. It is an insightful guide to how leaders can infuse meaning into their organizations." --Jeffrey Pfeffer, Professor, Stanford Graduate School of Business and author of Power: Why Some People Have It—and Others Don't "This book brings the question 'why' to the place in which we spend most of our adult lives, giving us insightful tools to help make a meaningful difference in people's lives." --Don Hall, Jr., president and CEO, Hallmark Cards, Inc. "This is a must read for anyone who works, leads others at work, or works to build a supportive environment." --Beverly Kaye, founder/CEO, Career Systems International, and coauthor of Love 'Em or Lose 'Em: Getting Good People to Stay "The Why of Work opens the door to significant employee engagement. The alignment between company values and those of customers and communities can indeed give employees a sense of purpose while delivering great results to customers!" --Paula S. Larson, Chief HR Officer, Invesys "Blackstone has proved that finding superior leaders produces superior results. Dave Ulrich has brought this thinking to a new level at Blackstone. Every private equity investor and senior manager must read this book." --James Quella, Senior Operating Partner, The Blackstone Group According to studies, we all work for the same thing--and it's not just money. It's meaning. Through our work, we seek a sense of purpose, contribution, connection, value, and hope. Digging down to the meaning of work taps our resilience in hard times and our passion in good times. That's the simple but profound premise behind this groundbreaking book by renowned management expert Dave Ulrich and psychologist Wendy Ulrich. They've talked to thousands of people--from rank-and-file workers to clients and customers to top-level executives--and synthesized major disciplines to identify the "why" behind our most successful experiences. Using the model of the "abundant organization," they provide you with the "how" to create meaning and value in your own workplace. Learn how to: Ask the seven questions that drive abundance Understand the needs of your customers and staff Personalize the work to motivate your employees Build and grow your business in any economy By following the Ulrichs' step-by-step guidelines, you will set off a chain reaction of positive and enduring effects. Employees who fi nd meaning in their work are more competent, committed, and eager to contribute—and their contribution will result in increased customer commitment, which delivers a winning performance on the bottom line. The Why of Work includes targeted checklists, questionnaires, and other useful tools to help you turn aspirations into action. Using the proven principles of abundance, you can coordinate your needs with those of your employers, your employees, and your customers--and create a vision that resonates for years to come. When you understand why we work, you know how to succeed.

Does life have meaning? Is it possible for life to be meaningful when the world is filled with suffering and when so much depends merely upon chance? Even if there is meaning, is there enough to justify living? These questions are difficult to resolve. There are times in which we face the mundane, the illogically cruel, and the tragic, which leave us to question the value of our lives. However, Iddo Landau argues, our lives often are, or could be made, meaningfulwe've just been setting the bar too high for evaluating what meaning there is. When it comes to meaning in life, Landau explains, we have let perfect become the enemy of the good. We have failed to find life perfectly meaningful, and therefore have failed to see any meaning in our lives. We must attune ourselves to enhancing and appreciating the meaning in our lives, and Landau shows us how to do that. In this warmly written book, rich with examples from the author's life, film, literature, and history, Landau offers new theories and practical advice that awaken us to the meaning already present in our lives and demonstrates how we can enhance it. He confronts prevailing nihilist ideas that undermine our existence, and the questions that dog us no matter what we believe. While exposing the weaknesses of ideas that lead many to despair, he builds a strong case for maintaining more hope. Along the way, he faces provocative questions: Would we choose to live forever if we could? Does death render life meaningless? If we examine it in the context of the immensity of the whole universe, can we consider life meaningful? If we feel empty once we achieve our goals, and the pursuit of these goals is what gives us a sense of meaning, then what can we do? Finding Meaning in an Imperfect World is likely to alter the way you understand your life.

Hip-hop has given A-Luv everything he ever wanted: money, status, and bling. What A-Luv doesn't know is that his life is about to be upended during a fateful trip to India. All the suffering that's buried beneath the shiny exterior of his life will be brought to the surface when an unexpected guide starts him on a journey of personal and spiritual growth. Follow along as A-Luv learns to let go of beliefs that have long kept him stuck, and live in a state of flow that will transform his music--and his life. Told as a parable, Bling: A Story About Ditching the Struggle & Living in Flow is filled with powerful lessons for anyone who's unsure of how to reach their full potential. Andy Seth--whose life inspired A-Luv's story--uses hip-hop as a lens to show that inner peace and joy can be achieved while remaining creative and ambitious. Andy unpacks the tenets of a high vibe lifestyle that will move you from seeking to finding--from a place of uncertainty to a place of peace, focus, optimism, energy, and success you never thought possible.

What does it really mean to be a grown up in today’s world? We assume that once we “get it together” with the right job, marry the right person, have children, and buy a home, all is settled and well. But adulthood presents varying levels of growth, and is rarely the respite of stability we expected. Turbulent emotional shifts can take place anywhere between the age of thirty-five and seventy when we question the choices we’ve made, realize our limitations, and feel stuck—commonly known as the “midlife crisis.” Jungian psycho-analyst James Hollis believes it is only in the second half of life that we can truly come to know who we are and thus create a life that has meaning. In Finding Meaning in the Second Half of Life, Hollis explores the ways we can grow and evolve to fully become ourselves when the traditional roles of adulthood aren’t quite working for us, revealing a new way of uncovering and embracing our authentic selves. Offering wisdom to anyone facing a career that no longer seems fulfilling, a long-term relationship that has shifted, or family transitions that raise issues of aging and mortality, Finding Meaning in the Second Half of Life provides a reassuring message and a crucial bridge across this critical passage of adult development.

In the spring of 2010, Harvard Business School’s graduating class asked HBS professor Clay Christensen to address them—but not on how to apply his principles and thinking to their post-HBS careers. The students wanted to know how to apply his wisdom to their personal lives. He shared with them a set of guidelines that have helped him find meaning in his own life, which led to this now-classic article. Although Christensen’s thinking is rooted in his deep religious faith, these are strategies anyone can use. Since 1922, Harvard Business Review has been a leading source of breakthrough ideas in management practice. The Harvard Business Review Classics series now offers you the opportunity to make these seminal pieces a part of your permanent management library. Each highly readable volume contains a groundbreaking idea that continues to shape best practices and inspire countless managers around the world.

The founder and CEO of Path North, Georgetown University professor, and former White House advisor teaches you how to find meaning, balance, and purpose throughout your career while reaching the highest levels of professional achievement—how to do well without losing yourself. Throughout his illustrious career, J. Douglas Holladay has taught generations of executives as well as students in his popular MBA course at Georgetown how to use a holistic approach to defining and reaching success in life and business. Success does not come with an instruction manual. Too often “successful” people end up feeling empty, isolated, and depressed because they have lost focus on what is most important in their lives. Rethinking Success can help anyone, no matter their field, maintain the practices and values that keep them in tune with their most cherished beliefs throughout their careers. Drawn from the insights of his network of famous friends as well as his experiences as an investment banker, White House advisor, diplomat, longtime business professor, and non-profit consultant, the advice in Rethinking Success is centered around eight essential questions we must ask ourselves regularly to stay focused, connected, and joyful throughout our working lives. Filled with essential wisdom, Rethinking Success is a powerful guide that allows us to do well while staying in tune with the values and beliefs that are most important to us.

In Thich Nhat Hanh’s latest teachings on applied Buddhism for both the work place and daily life, chapters include dealing with workplace scenarios; dealing with home and family; encounters with strangers and with daily life; transportation; and creating communities wherever you are. This book is designed for adults who are new to meditation as well as those who are more experienced. The emphasis is on how to use applied Buddhism in daily life. Work aims at contributing to new models of leadership and doing business. It is also a book full of life-coaching advice, finding happiness, and positive psychology. We all need to "Chop Wood and Carry Water". Most of us experience work, hardship, traffic jams, and everything modern, urban life offers. By carefully examining our everyday choices we can move in the direction of right livelihood; we can be a lotus in a muddy world by building mindful communities, learning about compassionate living, or by coming to understand the concept of "Buddha nature." Work also discusses mindful consumption, or the mindful use of limited resources. Instead of Living Large in Lean Times or Ramen to Riches we can learn to appreciate living less large and think about what kind of riches we want for ourselves and others.