Your career treasure trove (and why meaningful work matters more than you think)

Meaningful work: your career treasure trove

At some point, most of us find ourselves feeling gloomy on a Sunday night, thinking ahead to Monday and wondering what it’s all for. Work, life, the daily grind – what’s it all for? And more importantly: Is this really how I want to spend my time?

For many of us, questions about work are deeply entwined with the bigger existential questions of life itself. What’s our purpose? Why are we here? What kind of life are we trying to build? They’re huge questions – ones that usually require time to unravel, ideally with a supportive listener and plenty of good biscuits. But these huge questions are very human – we’re wired to ask them. We’re meaning-makers. Even in chaos (which can feel like much of the time, nowadays), we instinctively search for purpose.

During his imprisonment in concentration camps, Holocaust survivor and psychiatrist-to-be Viktor Frankl noticed something extraordinary: those who were able to survive often found meaning even in the darkest of situations. Whether it was in a small act of kindness, noticing a beautiful sunrise, or holding onto a sense of dignity and inner freedom. Frankl went on to create logotherapy, a form of psychotherapy grounded in the idea that our most powerful drive in life isn’t pleasure or power, but the pursuit of meaning.

So if our search for meaning is that fundamental, and work takes up a massive chunk of our waking lives, it follows that work really matters. When our work feels meaningful, we don’t just get more out of our careers – we get more out of life.

Meaningful work: a treasure trove of benefits

Let’s be clear: meaningful work doesn’t mean your job is easy, glamorous, or always enjoyable. What it does mean is that it’s fulfilling – that it feeds and nourishes something deeper inside you.

And that kind of work is good for you. Really good. In fact, it provides a treasure trove of benefits, for your wellbeing and for how you perform at work.

In terms of wellbeing, psychologists talk about two kinds of happiness: hedonic and eudaimonic.

Hedonic happiness is about pleasure, comfort, and feeling good. (Whatever floats your boat: food, friends, adrenaline sports, spa treatments, dancing, holidays… even better, some combination of these). Hedonic happiness is FUN and it absolutely has its place. But over time, a life built only on hedonism can feel hollow.

Eudaimonic happiness is different. It’s about meaning, growth, contribution, and purpose. It’s the satisfaction that comes from doing something worthwhile, even if it’s hard. Ancient philosophers like Aristotle believed this was the true path to flourishing. And modern research backs that up: when we feel our lives (and our work) have meaning, we’re more resilient, more fulfilled, and more connected to others.

In fact, studies show that a strong sense of meaning is associated with:

• Better mental health

• Improved physical health, and even longevity

• Stronger relationships

• Greater sense of achievement

  
  

And when work feels meaningful, it can also improve life outside of work. Through something called work-life enrichment, having purpose at work can boost your personal relationships – including with partners and kids. You’re more fulfilled, and more likely to model a healthy, balanced approach to your own career. That’s powerful, especially if you want to inspire younger generations.

And here’s where it gets even more interesting: meaningful work doesn’t just give you a temporary high. It creates a ‘broaden and build’ effect. This means the positive emotions you feel from meaningful work – things like joy, pride, and accomplishment – open you up to new ideas and possibilities. You become more creative, more capable, more ready to grow. That, in turn, creates more positive emotion. It’s an upward spiral. A meaningfulness buy-one-get-one-free deal.

Meaning helps you thrive at work

It’s not just your wellbeing that benefits. Work that feels meaningful also helps you perform at your best.

Meaningful work is the strongest driver of engagement. Stronger than salary, recognition, or even good leadership. When people believe their work matters, they show up differently. They’re more focused, more committed, and more likely to go above and beyond – not because they have to, but because they want to.

Research consistently shows that people who find their work meaningful are:

• More productive

• More creative

• More likely to collaborate and share ideas

• More resilient in the face of challenges

• Less likely to take sick days or quit

  
  

They also tend to act as ‘organisational citizens’. Those people within companies who look out for others, share knowledge, and do the right thing, even when no one’s watching.

Of course, there is a cautionary note here. The same deep commitment that fuels passion and engagement can also lead to burnout if we’re not careful. When we care too much, we can overextend ourselves – working long hours, saying yes to everything, and putting others’ needs ahead of our own. (You can see more about my research into meaningful work and stress, for example). It’s a fine line, but one we can walk. For now, the message is this: meaningful work makes you shine—but boundaries matter too.

Meaningful work in practice

What does meaningful work look like for you? Well, it depends. It’s personal: your idea of fulfilling isn’t likely to be the same as mine, or the next person. In a recent blog I shared some of the key themes that often tend to appear but the detail is yours to determine.

Indeed, the search for meaningful work is not about chasing a dream job or waiting for perfect conditions. It’s about understanding what matters most to you. And then taking intentional steps to align your work in that direction, be it through small tweaks or a more fundamental change like a new job or career. In my upcoming book, Smart Careers: how to turn a mid-career crisis into a rewarding work life, I’ll guide you through this process, with plenty of practical exercises, real-life stories and evidence-backed science to ease the way.

For now, start by asking yourself:

• When do I feel most alive in my work?

• What kinds of tasks give me energy instead of draining it?

• What do I want to be different as a result of my work?

  
  

Best of all, you don’t need a dramatic reinvention to get started. You just need some curiosity, and the willingness to explore what a more meaningful version of work might look like for you.

Because when you find it, everything starts to change.

Smart Careers is being published by Bloomsbury Business. It’s available for pre-order now, and will be released on 28 August.