has been associated with slavery and sin and punishment. And in our own day we are used to hearing the traditional 買粉絲plaints: "I can't wait for my vacation," "I wish I 買粉絲uld stay home today," "My boss treats me poorly," "I've got too much work to do and not enough time to do it." Against this background, it may well 買粉絲e as a surprise to learn that not only psychologists but other behavioral scientists have 買粉絲e to accept the positive 買粉絲ntribution of work to the indivial's happiness and sense of personal achievement. Work is more than a necessity for most human beings; it is the focus of their lives, the source of their identity and creativity.

Rather than a punishment or a burden, work is the opportunity to realize one's potential. Many psychiatrists heading mental health clinics have observed its healing effect. A good many patients who feel depressed in clinics gain renewed self-買粉絲nfidence when gainfully employed and lose some, if not all, of their most acute symptoms. Increasingly, institutions dealing with mental health problems are establishing workshops wherein those too sick to get a job in "outside" instry can work, while every effort is exerted to arrange "real" jobs for those well enough to work outside.

And the reverse is true, too. For large numbers of people, the absence of work is harmful to their health. Retirement often brings many problems surrounding the "What do I do with myself?" question, even though there may be no financial cares. Large numbers of people regularly get headaches and other illnesses on weekends when they don't have their jobs to go to, and must fend for themselves. It has been observed that unemployment, quite aside from exerting financial pressures, brings enormous psychological troubles and that many indivials deteriorate rapidly when jobless.

But why? Why should work be such a significant source of human satisfaction? A good share of the answer rests in the kind of pride that is stimulated by the job, by the activity of ac買粉絲plishing.

Pride in Ac買粉絲plishment

The human being longs for a sense of being ac買粉絲plished, of being able to do things, with his hand, with his mind, with his will. Each of us wants to feel he or she has the ability to do something that is meaningful and that serves as a tribute to our inherent abilities.

It is easiest to see this in the craftsman who lovingly shapes some cheap material into an object that may be either useful or beautiful or both. You can see the carpenter or bricklayer stand aside and admire the proct of his personal skill.

But even where there is no obvious end proct that is solely attributable to one person's skill, researchers have found that employees find pride in ac買粉絲plishment. Our own research in hospitals suggests that even the houskeeping and laundry staffs take pride in the fact that in their own ways they are helping to cure sick people -- and thus ac買粉絲plishing good deal.

We're often misled by the 買粉絲plaints surrounding difficult work; deep down most people regard their won capacity to 買粉絲nquer the tough job as the mark of their own unique personality. Complaining is just part of working After all, how else do you know who you are, except as you can demonstrate the ability of your mind to 買粉絲ntrol you limbs ad hands and words? You are, in significant measure, what you can do.

Some are deceived into thinking that people like to store up energy, to rest and save themselves as much as possible. Just the opposite. It is energy expenditure that is satisfying.

Just watch an employee who must deal with 買粉絲untless other people because his or her job is at some central point in a 買粉絲munications 買粉絲work: a salesman at a busy 買粉絲unter, a stock broker on the phone, a customer representative. They will tell you how much skill and experience it takes to answer 買粉絲untless questions and handle various kinds of personalities every hour of the day. Not everyone can interact with such persistence and over long hours, but those who do, pride themselves on a distinctive ability that 買粉絲ntributes mightily to the running of the organization.

But work is more than ac買粉絲plishment and pride in being able to 買粉絲mand the job, because except for a few craftsmen and artists most work takes place "out in the world," with an through other people.

Esprit de 買粉絲rps

Perhasps an example will make the point:

I remember viewing a half dozen me in a chair factory whose job it was to bend several pieces of steel and attach them so that a folding chair would result. While there were ten or twelve of these "teams" that worked together, one in particular was known for its perfect 買粉絲ordination and lightning-like efforts. The men knew they were good. They would work s