Finding "the meaning of life" in dirty work

"Howard Roark’s bold claim in [the novel] The Fountainhead [is] that “the meaning of life” is “your work. ...

"[P]opular culture[however] reflect widespread attitudes about work: it’s not fun, is at best useful for paying the bills and funding more enjoyable activities, and should be avoided if at all possible ...

"It’s easy for those who live in industrialised countries and cities to picture suits and ties, paycheques, uniforms, store shelves laden with goods, and rush-hour commuter traffic when thinking about work. The trappings of complex market societies direct our focus in the realm of work to making and spending money. However, whether Eve plucks a piece of fruit from a tree or John Locke imagines gathering acorns from the woods, ultimately all labour—physical and intellectual—is first of all about producing in order to live. As Ayn Rand puts it, 'a man works in order to support his own life,' using his mind and effort to solve 'the problem of survival.' ...

"[Mike Rowe's TV series] 'Dirty Jobs and Somebody’s Gotta Do It' brought hundreds of examples of sooty, grimy, sweaty people—who were also happy, flourishing, and paid well—to millions of television screens for well over a decade. Some, like Les Swanson, even chose to leave the white-collar job of guidance counsellor for a career in cleaning septic tanks. 

"Rowe noticed that folks like Swanson 'seemed to be better balanced and happier than most of the people [he] knew,' and asked, '[W]hat in the world do these people know that the rest of us don’t?' In an inversion of a seeker’s stereotypical trek to the top of a mountain to ask a cross-legged sage about the secret to a happy and meaningful life, Rowe put the question to Swanson while helping him 'suck . . . the shit out of people’s septic tanks.' Swanson’s response? 'What came first was the fact that nobody was doing this. What came second was my own, hardheaded commitment to be very good at it. And then, I did the thing that is the hardest thing to do. And that is figure out how to love something that you didn’t think you did.'

"Swanson paid attention to the reality of the market to capitalise on an opportunity to fill a gap he perceived and was more than willing to become excellent at his new job. It’s in the last step he identifies of learning how to love work that was not in his original game plan—a reality for countless workers—that the key to meaning exists. Even those who do follow their passion and fortunately land work they love right out of the gate are not always sure that their work is meaningful. 

"They, too, need to wrestle with 'the meaning question.' So, what is meaningful work? And how can that make for a meaningful life? ...

"We can look to philosopher-mechanic Matthew B. Crawford for a more current embodiment and articulation of this insight. When reflecting on what being an electrician’s assistant meant to him (a job he held as a teenager and young man), he says:

'I never ceased to take pleasure in the moment, at the end of a job, when I would flip the switch. "And there was light." It was an experience of agency and competence. The effects of my work were visible for all to see, so my competence was real for others as well; it had a social currency. . . . Maybe another electrician would see it someday. Even if not, I felt responsible to my better self. Or rather, to the thing itself—craftsmanship has been said to consist simply in the desire to do something well.'

"Crawford’s thoughtful account of what the work of electrician’s assistant meant to him—which transfers to his approach to all of his current work as a philosopher and motorcycle mechanic—reflects insights offered by Rowe [and others] about what makes work both subjectively and objectively meaningful. ...

"[T]he spiritual values you produce through your work [summarises] Rand also 'make his life worth living.' ...

"[L]ife takes work and ... such work requires taking personal responsibility for building a character and self capable of working. It also involves consciously choosing to engage in meaningful work and finding ways to illuminate how that work provides meaning in your life. When these are all in place, alienation and other ills get crowded out. You can look with pride at your life that you stocked with values you created through your work, smile, and say, 'I made this!'

"When Rowe replaces 'follow your passion' with 'bring your passion with you,' that’s a call to bring your passion for living with you no matter where you go or what job you have. Whether you’re building houses or bridges, painting a canvas, or writing a book, you’re always busy with the work of building your life. Roark’s proclamation that 'the meaning of life” is 'your work' is thus not so startling after all."

~ Carry-Ann Biondi from her symposium paper 'Mike Rowe, Work, and Meaning in Life'