Sacrifices to the God of Work need to be made with extreme care.We typically give  the best waking, fresh, virgin hours of five or more days a week to this insatiable God. Meaningful work is central to living a rewarding life. Now there is research that takes it a step further. Peter Butterworth and colleagues from ANU, just published research from a large study in Australia of over 7,000 people. They found that some jobs result in poorer mental health than having no job at all. Yes, you are better off dealing with the depressogenic effects of unemployment than some soul-destroying jobs.

Jobs that fall into this category have the following characteristics:

• afford little control and freedom to make decisions  i.e. little autonomy
• are overly demanding
• provide little support
• provide few rewards (not just financial)

Jobs that are meaningful are high in

• Autonomy
• Developing an ongoing sense of Mastery
• Purpose that goes beyond ourselves – to in some small way making life better for others, the planet or its plants and animals

Where does your work fall?