Of course, the size of the salary for each employee is very important, and always happy if it increases. But would you agree to lower your monthly salary to do work that makes you feel truly happy? It seems like most professionals would go for it. According to a report published in Harvard Business Review magazine, 9 out of 10 employees are willing to earn less if their work becomes more significant.
The essence of the study
Researchers interviewed 2,285 working professionals from 26 areas. All participants had different sizes of payment, they were employees of both large and small companies. The main goal of the study was to understand how much employees value significant work and how they understand it is related to the size of monetary incentives. It was assumed that the wise use of this data could help both employees and employers to achieve their life goals.
Sociologists got unexpected results: 9 out of 10 respondents agreed to exchange the percentage of earnings for activities that would make their work really significant. On average, participants were willing to give up 23 percent of all future salaries for performing significant work in the office.
Only one out of 20 employees admitted that they are doing significant work. On average, the survey participants felt that the work did not live up to their expectations regarding the level of significance: their activities were about half as important as they wanted.
What do representatives of different professions say?
In many cases, the answers of the respondents directly depended on the scope of their work. The study showed that people whose professions are focused on medicine, education and social work are more satisfied with their workplace than those involved in administrative support and transportation.
The report mentions that specialists with the most significant jobs are 69 percent less likely to leave their organization and have a longer service life. In addition, such employees spend an additional hour at work every week and receive less paid leave.
What conclusions can be drawn from the study?
The authors of this study suggest that employers should attach more importance to the daily tasks of their employees, strengthening social ties in the workplace and bringing together professionals who consider their work significant for others.
"Our study showed that knowledge workers are more important at work than others and have a particularly strong sense of significance from active professional growth. Knowledge workers are also very likely to be inspired by the activities of their organizations," the study says.
All responsibility lies with employers.
Employers can use coaching and mentoring tools to help employees at all levels find meaning in their work. In addition, they can focus on encouraging creativity and the involvement of all members of their team.
For a more successful activity (and a happier life), employees must understand the value of the work they perform. Whether it’s global steps or small changes, any activity can be beneficial, and the realization that it is you who made the world a little bettergives rise to motivation for further work and a desire to grow and develop in the professional field.
What do you think about the need to increase the importance of the work of each employee in a team? Does your activity benefit other people? Do not forget to write about it in the comments!