Brand U work is not only a way to put a roof over our heads and food onto the table but also:
- Provides income. Income is a major reason for working.
- Provides a sense of worth. Many identify who we are by what we do. I am a customer service representative, lawyer, engineer, and so on.
- Becomes a person’s identity. How do you answer the question: ‘What do you do?’ Work for some becomes their main identity and organizing event in life. We work for Intel or Microsoft. We are part of the best and brightest.[i]
- Imposes self-discipline. Work structures our life. We have somewhere to go and to do – adding value to our employer in exchange for a salary.
- Forms family cohesion. Work establishes and communicates values to our family. Through work, we may develop a greater meaning to life, relationships, and family.
- Is a higher calling. Work for some is a higher calling and a service to others. We may view work as an expression of whom we are. Work may provide a way for making a difference. Work may point us to a higher mission such as providing for the needy, poor, disabled, or disenfranchised.
[i] Pulley’s, Mary Lynn, Losing Your Job – Reclaiming Your Soul, Jossey Bass, 1997, p. 16.