Know Why PodcastInterview With Dr. Sandra Glahn
Does God actually care about the marginalized? If so, why does he seem so harsh in the Old Testament? Why do Christians seem like hypocrites today? In this episode, returning Know Why favorite Dr. Sandra Glahn tackles these hard questions. Dr. Glahn is an author, professor, and sought-after expert in issues relating to Jesus, Scripture, women and gender, and more.
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From the time we are little kids we’re asked what we want to be when we grow up. We’re encouraged to try all the extracurriculars and pick our favorite, or otherwise identify our “passion.” “Find out what you’re passionate about and find a way to make money doing it,” we’re told. In short, in the modern age, work has gone from a job, to a career, to a calling.
But what if that isn’t the best way to think about work?
What is Workism?
In 2019 Derek Thompson wrote an article for The Atlantic about the “religion of workism.” He shows that rich men work the most these days, contrary to history when the most privileged groups typically worked least. Why is that? Here’s what Thompson writes:
“Maybe the logic here isn’t economic at all. It’s emotional—even spiritual. The best-educated and highest-earning Americans, who can have whatever they want, have chosen the office for the same reason that devout Christians attend church on Sundays: It’s where they feel most themselves.”
But it’s not just rich men anymore. Workism is spreading. Thompson writes, “In a 2018 paper on elite universities, researchers found that for women, the most important benefit of attending a selective college isn’t higher wages, but more hours at the office.”
He continues:
“What’s more, in a recent Pew Research report on the epidemic of youth anxiety, 95 percent of teens said ‘having a job or career they enjoy’ would be ‘extremely or very important’ to them as an adult. This ranked higher than any other priority, including ‘helping other people who are in need’ (81 percent) or getting married (47 percent). Finding meaning at work beats family and kindness as the top ambition of today’s young people.”
Millennials and Gen Z want to make a difference through their work. Why is that a problem? It’s not. To quote Thompson again:
“The problem with this gospel—Your dream job is out there, so never stop hustling—is that it’s a blueprint for spiritual and physical exhaustion. Long hours don’t make anybody more productive or creative; they make people stressed, tired and bitter.”
Finding Happiness at Work
To really find the key to happiness at work, we must rethink our preconceived notions about our interest and “passions.”
Combatting Fixed Theory
The first thing to consider is fixed theory—the idea that our passions are ingrained in us from the beginning of our lives and can’t be changed. But this has been disproved by neuroscience…and common sense.
“If passions are things found fully formed, and your job is to look around the world for your passion—it’s a crazy thought,” Greg Walton, a Stanford professor and co-author of a study on interests and passions, told The Atlantic in 2018. “It doesn’t reflect the way I or my students experience school, where you go to a class and have a lecture or a conversation, and you think, That’s interesting. It’s through a process of investment and development that you develop an abiding passion in a field.”
So what’s the opposite of fixed theory? It’s the notion that interests can develop overtime…and in fact, this is something proven by neuroscience.
Intrinsic Motivations vs. Extrinsic Motivations
Arthur Brooks has a series in The Atlantic on “How to Build a Life.” One of his articles discusses the secrets to happiness at work. He writes:
“To be happy at work, you don’t have to hold a fascinating job that represents the pinnacle of your educational achievement or the most prestigious use of your ‘potential,’ and you don’t have to make a lot of money. What matters is not so much the ‘what’ of a job, but more the ‘who’ and the ‘why’: Job satisfaction comes from people, values, and a sense of accomplishment.”
He goes on:
“For real satisfaction, you should pursue intrinsic goals—two in particular. … The first is earned success. … Earned success instead gives you a sense of accomplishment. … The second goal worth pursuing at work is service to others—the sense that your job is making the world a better place. … you can find service in almost any job.”
Takeaways
To put it one way, relationships (service to others) are at the heart of what makes people happy at work. This is true regardless of your religious beliefs. However, these fundamental truths about relationships and even work are found in the Bible.
For instance, the most important biblical commands are not about changing the world, being successful, being smart, being morally perfect, or making more money, but simply this: Love God above all else, and love others as yourself.
The Bible also tells workers that whatever they are doing, to work for the Lord and not for man, giving immediate and intrinsic value to their work no matter what it is.
This doesn’t mean you shouldn’t hope for a dream job, or pursue jobs that interest you. But don’t be discouraged if you end up working a different job than you imagined, whether for a short season or a long time. You can still find happiness at work.
Get the who, what, and why of the Know Why Podcast! In this short pilot episode, host Liberty McArtor shares what you can expect from Know Why and how you can help influence future content.
Welcome to the Know Why Podcast!
I’m so excited you’re here.
My name is Liberty McArtor—your host for the Know Why Podcast. Here’s what the pilot episode and this post contain:
What is Know Why?
In summary: We’re a weekly podcast for young adults—right now that includes millennials and Gen Z—who desire deep and thoughtful conversations on topics that matter.
Here are a few things Know Why is not…
This podcast is about getting in-depth and answering questions that matter for our lives.
That can be anything from questions about what the Bible really teaches, to coping with mental illness, to creating a good work life balance.
This podcast is about getting in-depth and answering questions that matter for our lives.
That smattering of topics may seem completely disjointed. But here’s what they all have in common—what we believe about those things affects how we live our lives. And as young adults, we’re still building our lives. We’re laying foundations for our careers, our families, and our future. What we believe about everything from the purpose of work to questions of spirituality matters right now.
If you’re still not sure if this is a podcast for you, ask yourself these questions.
If you said yes to any of the above, Know Why Podcast is for you!
We hope to have listeners from all backgrounds and beliefs. And even if you don’t end up at the same place we do, we hope you’ll leave each episode with a better understanding of why you don’t agree…and that you’ll have been given something to think about.
Full disclosure, Know Why Podcast is a Christian organization. I, your host, am a follower of Jesus. And yet we feature a variety of guests from different religious and political affiliations, and ultimately we dive into what the research says.
Along with every episode, you can expect show notes or a blog post on our website with links and resources if you’re interested in learning more about what we’ve discussed.
You can expect episodes weekly, most featuring interviews, all featuring research about an issue relevant to our generations.
The History of Know Why
This project has been in the works for a while! In fact, the first several episodes you’ll hear on Know Why Podcast were recorded two years ago! But like many organizations, we were affected by the Covid-19 pandemic and had to delay production progress for a while. Which is another reason I’m so excited you are finally getting to hear Know Why!
Along with every episode, you can expect show notes or a blog post on our website with links and resources if you’re interested in learning more about what we’ve discussed.
Sometimes Know Why will explore a topic through a series of episodes, giving us a chance to tackle important from many different angles. Work on our first two series has already begun—so keep listening!
About Me
I’m a mom from Texas with an educational background in journalism and an affection for meaningful conversations. You can read my official biography on this website’s home page. And you can hear a bit more about when I got the job as host of the Know Why Podcast by listening to the pilot episode!
How You Can Help Know Why
There are two things you can do right now, and in fact we would LOVE if you did them.
Thanks for taking the time to learn more about Know Why Podcast. Visit us here at this website every week for more episodes and content!