THE SEARCH

Ever since I read Dan Pink's Drive, I've noticed a steady rise in the number of books that seek to help professionals find meaning in their work.

On the one hand, it's a little dispiriting to think about: Do so many people really feel that disconnected with the work that they do?

On the other hand, in a sense it's also inspiring to know that there are authors out there genuinely keen to help out people who may feel lost in the world of work who might be thinking about side hustles, or striking out on their own, or who simply need to put their search for meaning in their work in the proper perspective.

Bruce Feiler makes an excellent contribution in that regard with his book The Search: Finding Meaningful Work in a Post-Career World.

As the title suggests, Feiler's point of departure is how the professional landscape is now forever changed. Rare are the people who have singular careers from employment to retirement, or a defined professional trajectory, or a single job to do within an organization or on one's own. It's more likely than not that any person entering the workforce today will reinvent themselves professionally not once but multiple times over their working life. Indeed, The Search is all about these "workquakes," or the moments that make someone realize that the circumstances are right to make a professional pivot to something different, if not new. Ultimately, with the help of a variety of inspiring stories, the book provides a framework to process that decision carefully.

Feiler's insights align with my own thinking on the subject, though I would quibble with some points he makes. For instance, I don't agree that we necessarily live in a post-career world per se; I tend to think that the traditional career paradigm is now just one of many different options available to people (which is the beauty of the world we live in today). More, there's a palpable element of survivorship bias in the way The Search is framed: when you read story after story about people who found meaning in their lives because they went through a workquake and came out all the better for it, for sure it sounds like a good idea for anyone to answer the call. But it stands to reason that it doesn't work out for everyone.

For my part I tend to believe that not everything we do when we work is meaningful nor needs to be, but that the work that we do can be meaningful on the whole. That's just the way it is. Hence, to me the real value of a book like Feiler's is how it allows one to discern what kind of work would help give their life meaning. At the very least, that's what I appreciated most from the book.

THE SEARCH by Bruce Feiler, subtitled "Finding Meaningful Work in a Post-Career World," is an extremely interesting look at work and how it is changing. He writes about making job choices and others' expectations and making what feels like an "un-right choice" since it disappoints someone, but often ends up being the right choice. Feiler explores the idea of finding meaning through work and having an impact. He cites studies by Gallup and Deloitte which have respectively found that well-being and balance are more important, especially to younger workers, than salary or money. He argues that his research shows that the average person experiences twenty "workquakes" (e.g., getting laid off, taking time away to care for family members, starting your own business) during their time at work and that the majority of these workquakes are initiated outside of work. In its second half, THE SEARCH provides a series of questions to help you find work that you love and to evaluate your own situation. For example, Feiler notes that the story we learn from parents is often about the value of working hard, but that we are increasingly pushing back at the sacrifices (e.g., less family time) that are expected. THE SEARCH, based on hundreds of interviews, is written in a very accessible manner and will encourage a great deal of thoughtful reflection, including the final section on success and the American Dream(s). Readers who are interested may wish to also look at this recent excerpted essay by Feiler plus a book review, both from The Wall Street Journal:
https://www.wsj.com/articles/the-new-rules-of-success-in-a-post-career-world-3e54b343
https://www.wsj.com/articles/the-search-review-rethinking-the-rules-of-success-d8f7b38c

Also, Feiler recently spoke at Family Action Network – here is a video of that discussion:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TrsPVdYiVIs&t=971s

I wish I had had this book when I was first starting out -- back then, the path was high school, college, career, and then up that career ladder. And one career, not a patchwork of jobs, side hustles, and gigs to make a living. Mr. Feiler's thesis is that work today isn't that linear and that what we want and think will make us happy changes over time.

Mr. Feiler's research shows that we actually have the impetus to reinvent ourselves every two and half years, what he calls “workquakes.” If we notice and act, these can give us a reason to explore where we are and what we want and, if warranted, rethink our priorities. It's an interesting though exercise, and one I'll be trying -- soon than two and a half years!

The main message: stop chasing someone else's dreams, discover your own -- and be prepared for it to change over time.

Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for a review copy of this book.

Timely and relevant. A recommended purchase for collections where self-help and career titles are popular.