In his book, Lost Connections, Johann Hari talks about 9 ways in which we unplug from connections that are vital to our well-being and how depression can thrive in that fallow breach.
Disconnection 6 – from Meaningful Work – got my attention. Not because my work isn’t meaningful per se but because of the way my contribution has been managed, which is to say, not at all.
Hari documents how folks may become depressed and disengaged when it doesn’t seem to matter whether they do a really good job or a poor job because nobody really notices. Successes are not praised or rewarded. Managers do not engage meaningfully with what you’re doing unless results are poor.
He says that depression can also arise when you feel that you have no agency – no ability to innovate or influence how things are done or tweak your role to make your job more effective – that all your suggestions are disregarded, on principle, without thought or consultation. That you are better off being passive in the role, which is disempowering.
Folks need to have a sense of hope, that hard work will be acknowledged and rewarded on some level and that they have the opportunity to improve or better themselves both in terms of their skill but also their salary.
For the near-4 years I’ve been in my adult education role at the council, I have not been actively managed by anybody. My attempts to innovate, whilst appreciated by students and staff, have not been genuinely recognised by senior managers, resulting ultimately in a sense of apathy, that what I do doesn’t really matter. The only senior manager to engage with me consistently has been my boss’s boss who has consistently blocked any attempt for me to grow or develop in the role.
My boss’ boss had said she would rather I stopped doing the new, innovative, expansive things I’ve been doing than redefine my role. Being required to going back to doing things worse than I did them before, and having no outlet for my ideas and aspirations has contributed to my feelings of depression. This has been an on-going source of stress for me.
And one I’m not sure how to fix.
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