Book Review by Kay Monis

Book Title: The Art of Happiness at Work

Author: His Holiness The Dalai Lama and Howard C. Cutler, M.D.

Publisher: The Berkley Publishing Group

Publication Date: August 2003

Have you ever thought why some of your co-workers, who do the same type
of work and have the same workload, seem to be calm and happy? You
wonder if something is wrong with you because you don't feel the same
way? In looking at the daily routine of most people, the Dalai Lama and
Dr. Cutler selected the activity that takes up the most time of our
daily lives -- work. Their discussion focuses on human happiness,
whether at work or at play, there are different levels and categories of
happiness.

Most people need some kind of job in order to take care of their family.
We need to find a way to be happy at work as well as home. The Dalai
Lama touched on people who were under extreme conditions like Tibetans
unjustly persecuted by the Chinese government. Even traveling through
the Himalayas was a feat in itself. He saw his fellow Tibetans, who made
it to America, despite their long and dangerous journey, was in high
spirits because their dreams were fulfilled. They endured and overcame
great suffering in order to reach freedom.

Half of American workers are unhappy with their jobs. The variety of
reasons range from inadequate compensation, simple boredom or complex
factors that are related to the nature of the work. He also mentioned
inequity and unfairness at one's workplace. Feeling competitive or
jealous will only bring more worry and dissatisfaction. Based on this
reality, we can cultivate a wider perspective of the situation and try
to see different angles. We can think, there are other good things in my
life, and I still have it better compared to many. This is the reality.
Simply reflect on how fortunate one is to have the work, how there are
many people unable to get any kind of work. Sometimes we forget this and
get spoiled.

The Dalai Lama discussed the human factor, which we are on a basic level
because we are all human beings. The human factor is how we relate to
those around us, our co-workers, our customer, our boss is of prime
importance. If one makes the special effort to cultivate good
relationships with people at work, bring our good basic human qualities
to the workplace, it can make a tremendous difference. Whatever kind of
work we do, it can be satisfying. It is wrong to wait for the other
person to make the first move. No matter how powerful a single person
can be, if one does not have human companions, that individual cannot
survive. We depend on each other for our livelihood.

There are two factors we may experience while doing our jobs, the "flow"
and the "calling". The Dalai Lama mentioned, to be in the **flow** means
to be totally absorbed in whatever one is doing at the moment. The
**flow** can occur during any human activity, whether at work or at
play. It requires certain factors to create this state. It happens when
we are engaged in an activity we enjoy, that makes us feel important and
meaningful. Did you ever experience working hard and diligently at your
desk from the morning and look up at the clock, suddenly realizing it's
almost time to go home? Feeling it was a productive day and you
delighted your customers with your work? If yes, you experienced the
"flow".

There are individuals who view work as a career and the primary focus is
advancement. These people are motivated by prestige, status and the
power. However, once the promotions stop, they become dissatisfied.
Their interest in their job disappears. Then, there are the individuals
who do the work for the sake of working. The people in this category
love their work. They would continue working even if they didn't get
paid because their work is meaningful and makes contribution to society.
Those who view their work as a **calling** have a higher work
satisfaction. They also experience overall life satisfaction. Dr. Cutler
spoke about his friend who is a successful lawyer, won case after case
but was not satisfied with her life. She became consumed with
competitiveness and yearned for more money. She became dissatisfied when
she did not receive the compensation she thought she deserved. She lost
her calling from her earlier days as a prosecutor, protecting people
from criminals.

There are many components to human happiness since we are not programmed
to achieve happiness only through meaningful work. He mentioned about
more conventional day-to-day and moment-to-moment happiness, and how
productive activity and work can contribute to our overall life
satisfaction.

The portion explaining the "calling" made me immediately think of my
grandmother. My grandmother became a widow at the age of 41 with 5
children. The youngest child was 4 years old and she also had a daughter
with downs syndrome. My grandmother worked at a nearby farmer's market
for over 30 years. When she retired many years ago, my aunt mentioned my
grandmother never missed a day of work and the owner of the market was
very proud of my grandmother. I now wonder if my grandmother experienced
her work as a calling since she had to do her best to support her
family, she didn't have the time to be dissatisfied. Despite her
situation, she welcomed 2 college students from her hometown to live in
her home because they could not afford living in the dormitory. I think
her work and life ethics were passed on to my father. My father worked
the night shift full time and also had a second job at a gas station
during the day. He had to take a second job to pay for my sister's
medical bills. I never heard him complain about his work situation. The
two jobs he worked satisfied his priority and lessened his stress. My
father worked on the Naval Base and I remember my father bringing home
sailors to holiday dinners because they had no family here. **Attitude
towards work is shaped by both internal and external factors. Our
upbringing and culture play our role in the shaping our thought
process.**

We lead a diverse workforce. Effective leaders and managers need to make
the effort to understand human happiness, whether at work or at play
since there are different level and categories of happiness. Effective
leadership relates to feelings, attitudes and commitment!

Kay Monis