Rethinking Our Relationship with Work (Back to Work, Better)
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HBR IdeaCast
EMILY ESFAHANI SMITH: I do think that work is a place that many people find meaning and has historically been a place where many people have found meaning in their lives going all the way back to Martin Luther, the leader of the Protestant Reformation, he talked about how all work can be meaningful because it serves a need in the world. But I think even outside of a pandemic situation, the feeling of belonging at work, of feeling like you’re part of a team, of, some researchers talk about it, feeling like you have a best friend at work, all of these things are such powerful builders of meaning to the extent that people do feel that sense of belonging at work, they’re more productive and more engaged in their work, less likely to leave, less likely to show absentee behaviors.