One of my favorite movies is 'Bridge on the River Kwai'. It is a movie about leadership. But it is about something more. In the movie, Colonel Saito, the prisoner of war camp commander, addresses the imprisoned British soldiers. They were about to begin construction on a bridge over the River Kwai. “Be happy in you work,” he tells them and despite the fact that forced labor was against the rules of war ( rules of war?), the British soldiers marched off to the construction site each day, singing and whistling, and built a magnificent structure spanning the river. The Colonel was smart. He knew that idle hands and minds could lead to greater problems.
We have become a society where often our identity and value is linked, not to who we are, but what we do. With record numbers still seeking jobs, people are struggling to survive and many have lost their sense of personal value. With the safety net of unemployment compensation and short term health care benefits for those who have lost jobs, it sometimes becomes too easy to sit and wait for someone else to create the jobs and work opportunities. But as people wait, they soon begin to lose self confidence.
There can be joy in working! There is a feeling of personal satisfaction and accomplishment and while many may complain about going to work each day, or a 'nutty' boss or lazy co-worker, we now understand the alternatives and the negative impact upon individuals and society and the extraordinary financial costs to everyone, both the working and nonworking.
I recently heard the story of a young man who had been laid off from a well-paying tech company. He no longer reported to his little cubicle in the center of a room surrounded by other little cubicles. Resigned to collecting unemployment and knowing he still had some health insurance benefits should he become sick, he, like many others sat home each day waiting the phone to ring with the offer of a job. But no calls came.
Several months into the 'forced' early retirement and tension growing within the family, he saw a sign in the window of a small restaurant advertising the need for 'wait staff' and with nothing to lose, he went in to apply. Because he was neat in appearance and personable, he was offered the job. It was something he never dreamed he would do. It was hard, tiring work, but there was an 'element' of enjoyment about it. He was meeting new people and bringing home a little extra money to help pay down the debt he had amassed from his previous lifestyle.
By the end of the year he discovered he really liked the interaction with people. He had put away a few extra dollars and he and his family decided he would open his own little 'coffee shop.'
Today, despite the still challenging economy, he is doing well,. Will he become a millionaire? Probably not. But is he happy in his work? You bet. And he didn't wait for a government handout or some 'jobs bill' that would have taken years to pass in Congress.
What he discovered from within was the importance of taking the 'first' step. He had found an energy and enthusiasm for life far beyond what he had known inside that little cubicle, just because one day he got up off the sofa and accepted a job he thought he would never do.The decision changed his life forever. A decision like that might change many other lives too.
By the way, in the story of the River Kwai, you may remember that after all the hard work, as the first train passed over the bridge the bridge was blown up, destroyed by those who had built it. But it was not a sad ending to the story. It was a story about people, pride, and accomplishment, and being "happy in your work."
P.S. I usually don't do after thoughts, but I have to add this one. Work is not only about making money or driving a flashy car or truck. It is also about those around you, that you love, and making a contribution to their life so that life is a bit easier for everyone, even if the work or job is not what you may have dreamed about. Sometime a bit of sacrifice puts life into a new perspective and offers new and wonderful surprises..
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