Everett, Wash.
Published: Wednesday, April 8, 2009

Remember, any job has meaning and value

By Eve Nicholas
Herald Columnist

 In general, job seekers are thoughtful people. They spend time reflecting on the past, the present and the future, weighing financial needs against long-time passions, trying to reconcile dreams with reality as they march their individual roads to career success.

I've worked with job hunters in different capacities, and I understand that many feel bewildered by the concept of meaningful employment. They yearn for it, and yet they believe that true happiness exists in outside opportunities. In other industries. With different coworkers.

Plenty of employees and managers have frittered away time in their offices, stores, warehouses or company-owned vehicles, imagining better situations, daydreaming their way to a new, more meaningful job. But they never took action. And now that the economy has shifted, they feel trapped.

Recently, someone e-mailed me this statement: "I work in retail. It's not like I do anything important." Even though it was part of a larger message about the tough state of the economy, her sentiment surprised me. Saddened me, actually. Because this woman has sustained her job despite several rounds of layoffs, and she continues to perform her responsibilities with a smile and inspire her team during an extended period of low sales.

Her comment made me wonder about the hierarchy of careers. Is one industry more valuable than another? Is a retail job not essential or charitable enough to warrant our respect?

Certainly, most retailers do not base their business models on altruistic activities, and selling merchandise is a far cry from giving hands-on assistance to people in need. Especially in this case, since the woman who wrote the e-mail works in a high-end store with glitzy locations across the U.S.

But she works hard. She built a management career from the ground up. And as I mentioned earlier, she motivates the people around her -- a dwindling population of employees who also may feel guilty about their jobs -- and desperately afraid to lose them.

It's impossible for every job to be charitable by definition, or essential in the truest sense of the word. And yet, every opportunity has the potential to change lives.

Take this famous quote by Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. (excerpted from a 1967 speech): "If it falls your lot to be a street sweeper, sweep streets like Michelangelo painted pictures, sweep streets like Beethoven composed music ... Sweep streets like Shakespeare wrote poetry. Sweep streets so well that all the hosts of heaven and earth will have to pause and say: Here lived a great street sweeper who swept his job well."

Is your job essential? You bet it is. Whether you flip burgers, analyze banking figures or paint apartments for a living. People rely on you. They depend on your paychecks as much as you do, because every hour that you spend at the workplace -- and every dollar that you spend or save -- helps them keep their jobs.

Each industry has its place, employing more people, keeping the cycle going. When will we stop pretending that there is a hierarchy of employment? When will we give up the belief that one industry, job or skill-set is more righteous than the next?

It is human nature to wish for "something better." We also aspire to make a meaningful difference in people's lives. But sometimes, just holding a job is sufficient. It is contributing. It is enough.

Send your job search questions to Eve.GetAJob@gmail.com.
© 2009The Daily Herald Co., Everett, WA