Bring Living to Work: Social Impact at the Office

Your job holds the potential to positively impact others' lives. 

Yet, we live in a time when we talk about work/life balance. Here is an oft-quoted line from Anna Quidlen’s A Short Guide to a Happy Life:

“Don’t ever confuse the two, your life and your work…The second is only a part of the first. Don’t ever forget what a friend once wrote to Senator Paul Tsongas when the senator had decided not to run for reelection because he’d been diagnosed with cancer: “No man ever said on his deathbed I wish I had spent more time at the office.”

I recall my professor of Management and Strategy at UCLA reading this quote and musing about the counterpoint, “What if management is actually a higher calling? Maybe you can impact more lives in “the office” than by sitting and watching the sunset?”

Sure, work isn’t the entirety of your life. But it’s certainly part of your legacy and how you can impact the world around you. 

I recently watched the delightful movie, Living, a film that earned an Oscar nod for the fantastic Bill Nighy. In it, Nighy plays Williams, a mid-level London bureaucrat, who discovers the opportunity to impact the community. Most people think of bureaucracy as the antistis of impact, but in this movie, Nighy’s character strives to use his post for good through the establishment of a public park. 

At Kasvaa, we strive to impact the lives of our clients by helping them to grow their businesses. As our clients grow they, in turn, increase their ability to impact their customers through their products and services. While not always successful, our goal is for clients to feel rejuvenated when they meet with Kasvaa. We want them to dream their dreams and abate their fears. If we can do that, then they can hopefully be better managers and even family members who can leave their challenges at their desks when they go home for the night. 

My wife trains teachers for a for-profit education technology firm for the nation’s second-largest public school district (LAUSD). She can think of her work as merely doing a job to make money or she can attach to her brand purpose of helping teachers teach their students. In a given year she’ll train hundreds of teachers who, in turn, impact the lives of thousands of students. That’s important stuff for the young people of Los Angeles.

A retail employee or coffee barista can provide comfort to hundreds of people with whom they interact each day. 

Don’t doubt your power you can have “at the office.”

So how can we harness this power? 

Here are four ideas to get us started: 

First, like in the movie, Living, Williams leaves a legacy that inspires the other bureaucrats to “get things done.” Just by pushing to knock out milestones, you set the example for others that we are biased towards action. When you uncover an intractable problem ask yourself, “If I had to get this done, what would I do.” Pretend it’s life and death and you’ll get ‘er done.

Second, seek testimonials. Go back to your customers and ask them how your work impacted their life. We are often scared to do this because we don’t want to hear that we failed. Well we can get over that, because anyone in the arena will have a less-than-perfect record. But when you ask your customers and they tell you something positive you did for them, they will not only encourage you, but give you a roadmap for future impact. 

Third, ask, "How can I help?" upfront, setting your intention. It’s a little corny, but try some version of the following: “Hey, I try to do my job in a way that can make other people’s lives a little bit better. That’s my goal. Is there some way I can do that for you?”

You’ll probably get many bemused responses. That’s ok! What I have found is that it’s not about the customer or collaborator’s reaction, but it’s about setting my internal intention on what I am there to do. The question has more impact on the one asking more than the one being asked. 

Lastly, cut yourself some slack. There are days when we just can’t “bring it” at work. That doesn’t mean you are a bad person or you need to quit your job. It just means you are human. No parent is ready for the challenges of raising kids each day. No monk or nun is constantly in a state of bliss. And nobody can “bring it” 100 percent of the time at our jobs. Give yourself grace to know that if today wasn’t a great day, tomorrow can be. 

I hope to hear from you! 

As the great coach and leader, John Wooden told us, “Make each day your masterpiece!”

Go do it!

Stephen