CHAPTER 1

Why Meaning Matters

DO YOU MATTER AT WORK?

The question isn’t do you earn your paycheck, or are you good at what you do.

Do . . . you . . . matter?

Does the work you do uniquely make a difference to your company and to others—and does it matter to you?

Far too many of us feel our hours at work don’t count. While our plates may seem full, our lives may not. As a result, many of us simply disengage at some level. Gallup research found that 71 percent of American workers can be coded as either “not engaged” or “actively disengaged” in their work, meaning they are emotionally disconnected from their workplaces and are less likely to be productive.1 “Actively disengaged” can even mean that workers are undermining their workplace environment ...

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