Entries in Life

Related to my earlier entry about meaning in work is this Wired article titled Imortal Code. The Baker’s in the article knew that they wanted to do something meaningful and they set began with that in mind:

In 1971, newlyweds Jim and Janet Baker began mining just that type of gem. Nerds of the highest order, they met while graduate students at Rockefeller University in New York City – Janet in biophysics and Jim in mathematics – and were scouting around for a technical problem that would hold their interest. One stipulation: Whatever problem they chose would have to be a problem they could solve within their lifetimes. They picked computer dictation. How long did they think it would take? “From 30 to 50 years,” Janet responds matter-of-factly, “but toward the low end.”

Jeff is wondering about the meaning of work — something I’ve been thinking about for the past few years. Why am I doing this? What benefit do I see? What does my contribution mean? Is my work meaningful to me or is it just a way to make money — that is, is it all for “the company” or is there some value for me personally apart from a way to pay the mortgage?

Some people would wonder why I even care about these sorts of things. After all, they operate from an assumption that the work world doesn’t offer any deeper meaning. They can comfortably exchange any value they create (i.e. their work) for money without considering any further benefit because they never expected anything else. I’ve even met a few people who are so unconcerned with what they do that they are perfectly willing to flip burgers as long as they get paid.

Why do I think I “deserve” anything else besides a paycheck for the work that I do. Why do I expect to gain a personal benefit from my work?

In one sense, I don’t. I accepted this work, this job, knowing that the company’s focus was not on me and my satisfaction, but, instead, they wanted to make money. I understood that they were using me and my work in exchange for some sum of money. This is the only agreement that we had. I work, I get paid.

Somehow, my ego expects more. I want to know that the eight or so hours I spend at work have meaning beyond their bottom line. I spend almost a third of my adult life here, I want access to some of the value I create, too.

Ultimatly, I find that working with freely-redistributable software helps me fulfill my work obligations (I manage systems that run mostly-free software) and my personal desire for fulfillment (I can contribute a lot of my work back to the community).