Why We Work
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Narrated by:
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Barry Schwartz
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By:
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Barry Schwartz
About this listen
An eye-opening, groundbreaking tour of the purpose of work in our lives, showing how work operates in our culture and how you can find your own path to happiness in the workplace.
Why do we work? The question seems so simple. But Professor Barry Schwartz proves that the answer is surprising, complex, and urgent.
We've long been taught that the reason we work is primarily for a paycheck. In fact we've shaped much of the infrastructure of our society to accommodate this belief. Then why are so many people dissatisfied with their work, despite healthy compensation? And why do so many people find immense fulfillment and satisfaction through "menial" jobs? Schwartz explores why so many believe that the goal of working should be to earn money, how we arrived to believe that paying workers more leads to better work, and why this has made our society confused and unhappy and has established a dangerously misguided system.
Through fascinating studies and compelling anecdotes, this book dispels this myth. Schwartz takes us through hospitals and hair salons, auto plants and boardrooms, showing workers in all walks of life, showcasing the trends and patterns that lead to happiness in the workplace. Ultimately Schwartz proves that the root of what drives us to do good work can rarely be incentivized and that the cause of bad work is often an attempt to do just that. How did we get to this tangled place? How do we change the way we work? With great insight and wisdom, Schwartz shows us how to take our first steps toward understanding and empowering us all to find great work.
©2015 Barry Schwartz. All rights reserved. (P)2015 Simon & Schuster, Inc. All rights reserved.Listeners also enjoyed...
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They actually have vastly different styles and backgrounds. Yet despite their differences, great managers share one common trait: They don’t hesitate to break virtually every rule held sacred by conventional wisdom. They don’t believe that, with enough training, a person can achieve anything he sets his mind to. They don’t try to help people overcome their weaknesses. And, yes, they even play favorites. In this longtime management bestseller, Gallup presents the remarkable findings of its massive in-depth study of great managers.
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Content is dated
- By A. Yoshida on 09-09-19
By: Marcus Buckingham, and others
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Influencer, Second Edition
- The New Science of Leading Change
- By: Joseph Grenny, Kerry Patterson, David Maxfield, and others
- Narrated by: Joseph Grenny
- Length: 8 hrs and 10 mins
- Unabridged
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From the best-selling authors who taught the world how to have Crucial Conversations comes the new edition of Influencer, a thought-provoking book that combines the remarkable insights of behavioral scientists and business leaders with the astonishing stories of high-powered influencers from all walks of life. You'll be taught each and every step of the influence process - including robust strategies for making change inevitable in your personal life, your business, and your world.
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Very enlightening
- By Bryan Rael on 08-23-24
By: Joseph Grenny, and others
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Success and Luck
- Good Fortune and the Myth of Meritocracy
- By: Robert H. Frank
- Narrated by: Robert H. Frank
- Length: 5 hrs and 19 mins
- Unabridged
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How important is luck in economic success? No question more reliably divides conservatives from liberals. As conservatives correctly observe, people who amass great fortunes are almost always talented and hardworking. But liberals are also correct to note that countless others have those same qualities yet never earn much. In recent years, social scientists have discovered that chance plays a much larger role in important life outcomes than most people imagine.
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Not what is advertised
- By Andre on 04-18-17
By: Robert H. Frank
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Originals
- How Non-Conformists Move the World
- By: Adam Grant, Sheryl Sandberg - foreword
- Narrated by: Fred Sanders, Susan Denaker
- Length: 10 hrs and 1 min
- Unabridged
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With Give and Take, Adam Grant not only introduced a landmark new paradigm for success but also established himself as one of his generation’s most compelling and provocative thought leaders. In Originals he again addresses the challenge of improving the world, but now from the perspective of becoming original: choosing to champion novel ideas and values that go against the grain, battle conformity, and buck outdated traditions. How can we originate new ideas, policies, and practices without risking it all?
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Interesting, but not science
- By Lloyd Fassett on 03-14-16
By: Adam Grant, and others
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The 8th Habit
- From Effectiveness to Greatness
- By: Stephen R. Covey
- Narrated by: Stephen R. Covey
- Length: 14 hrs and 23 mins
- Unabridged
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The 8th Habit is the answer to the soul's yearning for greatness, the organization's imperative for significance and superior results, and humanity's search for its "voice". Profound, compelling, and stunningly timely, this groundbreaking new audiobook of next level thinking gives a clear way to finally tap the limitless value-creation promise of the Knowledge Worker Age.
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A Real Disappointment
- By Mark on 03-08-07
By: Stephen R. Covey
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The Complete Guide to Mergers and Acquisitions
- Process Tools to Support M&A Integration at Every Level, 3rd Edition
- By: Timothy J. Galpin, Mark Herndon
- Narrated by: Paul Heitsch
- Length: 10 hrs and 39 mins
- Unabridged
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Merger and acquisition activity across the globe continues to grow, and is also playing a major role in the development of expanding markets. A well-managed integration effort is essential to success, and failure means a tremendous waste in terms of time and money, as well as the rapid destruction of shareholder value. The Complete Guide to Mergers and Acquisitions: Process Tools to Support M&A Integration at Every Level, Third Edition is an invaluable resource to guide firms in managing M&A integration and maximize the value of their deals.
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Sales brochure for the authors
- By J Garner on 04-18-22
By: Timothy J. Galpin, and others
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Creative Schools
- The Grassroots Revolution That's Transforming Education
- By: Lou Aronica, Ken Robinson
- Narrated by: Ken Robinson PhD
- Length: 8 hrs and 13 mins
- Unabridged
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Ken Robinson is one of the world's most influential voices in education, and his 2006 TED Talk on the subject is the most viewed in the organization's history. Now, the internationally recognized leader on creativity and human potential focuses on one of the most critical issues of our time: how to transform the nation's troubled educational system.
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The Answer to Why Students Stop Trying
- By Alison Sattler on 07-21-15
By: Lou Aronica, and others
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Excellent Sheep
- The Miseducation of the American Elite and the Way to a Meaningful Life
- By: William Deresiewicz
- Narrated by: Mel Foster
- Length: 8 hrs and 34 mins
- Unabridged
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Excellent Sheep takes a sharp look at the high-pressure conveyor belt that begins with parents and counselors who demand perfect grades and culminates in the skewed applications Deresiewicz saw firsthand as a member of Yale's admissions committee. As schools shift focus from the humanities to "practical" subjects like economics and computer science, students are losing the ability to think in innovative ways.
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skip the book read the essay
- By Amazon Customer on 05-07-15
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The Upside of Irrationality
- The Unexpected Benefits of Defying Logic at Work and at Home
- By: Dan Ariely
- Narrated by: Simon Jones
- Length: 8 hrs and 18 mins
- Unabridged
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In his groundbreaking book Predictably Irrational, social scientist Dan Ariely revealed the multiple biases that lead us into making unwise decisions. Now, in The Upside of Irrationality, he exposes the surprising negative and positive effects irrationality can have on our lives. Focusing on our behaviors at work and in relationships, he offers new insights and eye-opening truths about what really motivates us on the job.
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Not as good as the first
- By Stephen on 06-20-10
By: Dan Ariely
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The Best Place to Work
- The Art and Science of Creating an Extraordinary Workplace
- By: Ron Friedman PhD
- Narrated by: Walter Dixon
- Length: 8 hrs and 18 mins
- Unabridged
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In The Best Place to Work, award-winning psychologist Ron Friedman, Ph.D. uses the latest research from the fields of motivation, creativity, behavioral economics, neuroscience, and management to reveal what really makes us successful at work. Combining powerful stories with cutting edge findings, Friedman shows leaders at every level how they can use scientifically-proven techniques to promote smarter thinking, greater innovation, and stronger performance.
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Useful ideas and information past first chapters
- By superstasia on 07-12-17
By: Ron Friedman PhD
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Springboard
- Launching Your Personal Search for Success
- By: G. Richard Shell
- Narrated by: Sean Pratt
- Length: 10 hrs and 56 mins
- Unabridged
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Everyone knows that you are supposed to "follow your dream". But where is the road map to help you discover what that dream is? You have just found it. In Springboard, award-winning author and teacher G. Richard Shell helps you find your future. His advice: Take an honest look inside and then answer two questions: What, for me, is success? How will I achieve it? You will begin by assessing your current beliefs about success, including the hidden influences of family, media, and culture. These are where the pressures to live "someone else's life" come from.
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Great book and fascinating perspective on success
- By Austin on 01-07-15
By: G. Richard Shell
What listeners say about Why We Work
Average customer ratingsReviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
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- Arasu
- 10-15-15
New believes give new hopes for modern generations
this books put forth new ideas about why we work. at least summarizes new ideas. but to influence the mainstream believes, and practices these ideas have to be proved with data and evidences.
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- Connie
- 12-16-16
Good book for those interested in learning social sciences
I probably was not the target audience. I studied psychology and am an organizational psychology professional. The book was nice but I did not hear anything new that I was unfamiliar with. It is presented in a good way for those unfamiliar with the topic, as I suppose most ted talks and the like one. Interesting work and good presentation of it though
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1 person found this helpful
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- Sherrie Smith
- 08-27-18
No gimics. Lots of depth. Read when all else fails
I picked up this book hoping to revitalize myself and sick of motivational quotes. I was pleasantly suprised and refreshed by the relatable examples.
This took what I learned in business school and updated it based on decades of study, and a real look at what keeps us going. It helped me remember why I aspired for a career in the first place.
I appreciated that this book is written for everyone employed, regardless of rank, pay, or tenure.
I will be placing this prominently on my bookshelf to recommend to others.
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1 person found this helpful
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- Mark Hampson
- 10-24-15
All corporate execs should get this message
This concise presentation of the human nature of what incentivized people to perform their best in the workplace, or any task for that matter, encourages managers and business leaders to look beyond financial incentives to improve their business performance. Great connections are made between the actions of real employees, working for real companies, and the theories presented.
Particularly at large industrial companies, we need to consider that the company does more than just make profits for its investors. Ultimate efficiency, where employee engagement is reduced to doing exactly and precisely the instructed task leads to disengaged employees who have no vested interest in improvement of their condition which in turn leads to reduced innovation and higher worker turnover. Mr. Schwartz's suggestions to develop committed employees would benefit all businesses.
I rated the performance 3 stars because the audio levels varied considerably and made it distracting to have to adjust the volume frequently to accommodate.
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2 people found this helpful
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- G.M.
- 06-26-16
groundbreakingly subversive
this expresses and deepens how I've felt forever about motivations, incentives and social assumptions, while thinking very free shared my vision. it draws from psychology, management, economics and philosophy to provide valuable insights and an alternative view of labour . great work
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- Nader Vossoughian
- 03-02-21
better as it goes on....
this is an excellent book that gets much better in the second half. the basic thesis, that work should be meaningful and that most forms of work are capable of providing meaning, is simple. what is far more interesting is the argument that the author offers against sticks and carrots based approaches to workplace design. the sticks and carrots approach, he argues, suffers from the fact that it often becomes a self fulfilling prophesy. if you treat people like commodities, they will behave like commodities, doing as little as they need to to satisfy contractual obligations. if you allow people space to derive meaning from work, establishing autonomy and an environment where a growth mindset can take root, they will thrive. this applies to janitors and not just lawyers or teachers. the best discussion concerns the author's application of marx's notion of ideology to incentive based workplace mechanisms.
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- bob
- 06-01-18
plattitudes and fluff
I hate academics, they don't know much : ( fluff and useless plattitudes. Academics don't seems to have as real work understanding or are able to communicate in an efficient way.
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