When is “Good Enough,” Good Enough?
Whoa…meta…
What does “good enough” mean in the context of a job? This is something that’s been on my mind lately. According to Simone Stolzoff, the question centers around how you define “enough” at a given moment. I agree. Some may take what Stozloff calls a “transactional” view of work, seeing it as a way to, quite simply, “get paid to do what you want and need outside of work, peace of mind, etc. And setting personal boundaries around that.” Others may think about this differently.
For the last 15 or so years, I’ve looked at work through the lens held up by Daniel Pink, one of my favorite authors whose work we’ve discussed in the past. In Drive, the book that really put him on the map (and one of the books that’s had a significant impact on my life), Pink cites research in support of the idea that playing to “intrinsic motivation” is most satisfying for many people in today’s working world and, therefore, that it will yield the best outcomes vis-à-vis “work:” both output and the happiness of those generating it. Further, Pink identifies the key elements of intrinsic motivation: autonomy (domain over one’s task, time, technique, and team), mastery (perennial ability to approach but never reach perfection), and purpose (meaning).1
OK, so what does this have to do with napping? To be concluded tomorrow.
I’d note here that one of Pink’s most often recommended books is Man’s Search for Meaning, by Viktor Frankl. I find this book phenomenally powerful and instructive in a lot of ways, and I feel like I should read it at least once a year.