The Soul at Work

“Monastic buildings show us how an intense interior life may generate an outward form of art, craft, and the care of things. Out of a simple life has come an extraordinary heritage of books, illuminated pages, sculpture, architecture, and music. The cultivation of the inner life overflows in outward displays of beauty and richness.

Maybe it’s a mistake to think of the monastic life as a withdrawal from the active world. We might see it more as an alternative to the hyperactivity that is characteristic of modern life. Traditionally, the monk is extremely active, and on many fronts: actively engaged in nurturing the inner life, actively committed to a communal style of living, and actively producing words, images, and sounds of extraordinary meaningfulness and beauty.”
—Meditations on the Monk Who Dwells in Daily Life

It seems such a stretch for me to imagine cultivating more awareness, more soulfulness, and more meaning out of my work life. My work environment seems the antithesis of monastic thoughtfulness and care. Home life, on the other hand, seems richly soulful to me. It is here at home that I am surrounded by the symbols that give my life meaning, by relationships that nourish and recreate me, where I can nurture little rituals of mindfulness, gratitude and joy.

It’s no wonder we feel so alienated and disconnected every day, when such a wide gulf exists between work and home. Is it just me? Does everyone feel this chasm? I think many do, and it accounts for the fragmentation and unease we experience regarding our work lives.

This is a challenge we must take up. We must find intentional ways to bring soulfulness and meaning back into our vocations and our workplaces. But I hardly know where to begin. To even use this kind of language at work seems slightly embarrassing. What will others think of me? Will they think I’m some kind of religious kook? What kind of strange looks and comments would I get if I closed my door every day and hung a sign that said, “Please do not disturb; meditation in progress”? And the truth is, in my work environment, which is so crisis-oriented, I fear I could not respect my own commitment to “soul time” even if others did. I’m lucky to even have a door to close. In many workplaces you’d have to go to the bathroom to get a minute’s worth of solitude.

I don’t know the answers, for myself or others. But I do know that we need to ask this question in an intentional, deliberate, and thoughtful way. Work is killing us, when it should be cultivating great joy and meaning in our lives. Perhaps today I will start with a tiny little experiment, one I’ve tried in the past with some success, when I can remember to do it. Today I will endeavor to slow down my pace (the speed of my physical activity as well as my thoughts) a mere ten percent. Reducing the pace ten percent actually takes far greater mindfulness than reducing it by half or coming to a complete stop. What I sometimes find is that in doing so, I can increase my productivity by more than ten percent, although that’s not the point. We’re not trying to become more productive; we’re trying to become happier, more holistic human beings.