Skip to main content

How People Maneuver Through Work, Life, and the Self to Find Spaces for Life Meaning

  • Chapter
  • First Online:
Consciousness-Based Leadership and Management, Volume 2

Abstract

While life meaning has been intensely investigated, ranging from spirituality to philosophy to psychology, little research has been found on its pragmatic role in business practice. Regardless of professional identity, employees, managers, parents, teachers, coaches, therapists, etc., can gain a better understanding of the multidimensionality of the human being (ego, mind, body, spirit), how the transformation of life meaning navigates through life stages and its implications in well-being, plenitude, and alienation. In business, human resource professionals champion practices for employee well-being where action focuses on the consciousness of personality and the technical competencies of the professional giving little or no attention to a multidimensional human being. Key findings include navigation of life meaning through a careful balance of Self, Family, and Work. It is through meaning that people craft the matrix where existence meets the purpose and where HR professionals can design interventions for an overarching, integrative approach in which meaning is not related only to work, but also to life, allowing a better understanding of how to maneuver along the web of life meaning to create well-being.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this chapter

Chapter
USD 29.95
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Available as PDF
  • Read on any device
  • Instant download
  • Own it forever
eBook
USD 149.00
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Available as EPUB and PDF
  • Read on any device
  • Instant download
  • Own it forever
Hardcover Book
USD 199.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Durable hardcover edition
  • Dispatched in 3 to 5 business days
  • Free shipping worldwide - see info

Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout

Purchases are for personal use only

Institutional subscriptions

Similar content being viewed by others

References

  • Bechtel Jayanti, E. (2011). Through a different lens: A survey of linear epistemological assumptions underlying HRD models. Human Resource Development Review, 10(1), 101–114.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Bernet, W., & Thomas, C. R. (2002). Children who remember previous lives: A question of reincarnation. Journal of the American Academy of Child & Adolescent Psychiatry, 41(8), 1022–1023.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Blumer, H. (2009). Symbolic interactionism: Perspective and method. University of California Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Bogart, G. C. (1994). Finding a life’s calling. Journal of Humanistic Psychology, 34(4), 6–37.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Bogart, G. C. (1995). Finding your life’s calling: Spiritual dimensions of vocational choice (1st ed.). Dawn Mountain Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Boyraz, G., Horne, S. G., & Waits, J. B. (2015). Accepting death as part of life: Meaning in life as a means for dealing with loss among bereaved individuals. Death Studies, 39(1), 1–11.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Callahan, J. L., & Ward, D. B. (2001). A search for meaning: Revitalizing the “human” in human resource development. Human Resource Development International, 4(2), 235–242.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Chalofsky, N., Cavallaro, L., & Cavallaro, L. (2013). A good living versus a good life: Meaning, purpose, and HRD. Advances in Developing Human Resources, 15(4), 331–340.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Charmaz, K. (2014). Constructing grounded theory (2nd ed.). Sage.

    Google Scholar 

  • Dik, B. J., O’Connor, W. F., Shimizu, A. B., & Duffy, R. D. (2019). Personal growth and well-being at work: Contributions of vocational psychology. Journal of Career Development, 46(1), 31–47.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Elangovan, A. R., Pinder, C. C., & McLean, M. (2010). Callings and organizational behavior. Journal of Vocational Behavior, 76(3), 428–440.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Flannery, M. (2017). Self-determination theory: Intrinsic motivation and behavioral change. Oncology Nursing Forum, 44(2), 155–156.

    Google Scholar 

  • Friedman, H. L., & Hartelius, G. (2013). The Wiley-Blackwell handbook of transpersonal psychology. Wiley.

    Book  Google Scholar 

  • Fry, L. W. (2003). Toward a theory of spiritual leadership. The Leadership Quarterly, 14(6), 693–727.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • García-Alandete, J. (2015). Does meaning in life predict psychological well-being? The European Journal of Counselling Psychology, 3(2), 89–98.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Giddens, A. (2006). Central problems in social theory: Action, structure and contradiction in social analysis. University of California Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Hall, D. T. (Tim), Yip, J., & Doiron, K. (2018). Protean careers at work: Self-direction and values orientation in psychological success. Annual Review of Organizational Psychology and Organizational Behavior, 5(1), 129–156.

    Google Scholar 

  • Haynes, C. (2016). Identity, transcendence and the true self: Insights from psychology and contemplative spirituality. HTS Teologiese Studies/Theological Studies, 72(4), 1–9.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Hicks, J. A., & Routledge, C. (Eds.). (2013). The experience of meaning in life: Classical perspectives, emerging themes, and controversies. Springer.

    Google Scholar 

  • Hillman, J. (1996). The soul’s code: In search of character and calling (Ballantine Books trade paperback edition). Ballantine Books.

    Google Scholar 

  • Hulnick, H. R., & Hulnick, M. R. (2010). Loyalty to your soul: The heart of spiritual psychology. Hay House.

    Google Scholar 

  • Kalashnikova, O., Leontiev, D., Rasskazova, E., & Taranenko, O. (2022, September 1). Meaning of life as a resource for coping with psychological crisis: Comparisons of suicidal and non-suicidal patients. Frontiers in Psychology, 13. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2022.957782.

  • Kets de Vries, M. F. R. (2016). The shaman, the therapist, and the coach. Organisational and Social Dynamics, 16(1), 1–18.

    Google Scholar 

  • Kraus, K. T. (2018). The soul as the ‘guiding idea’ of psychology: Kant on scientific psychology, systematicity, and the idea of the soul. Studies in History and Philosophy of Science Part A, 71, 77–88.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Kuchinke, K. P. (2013). Human agency and HRD: Returning meaning, spirituality, and purpose to HRD theory and practice. Advances in Developing Human Resources, 15(4), 370–381.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Laloux, F. (2014). Reinventing organizations (1st ed.). Nelson Parker.

    Google Scholar 

  • Lambert, N. M., Stillman, T. F., Baumeister, R. F., Fincham, F. D., Hicks, J. A., et al. (2010). Family as a salient source of meaning in young adulthood. Journal of Positive Psychology, 5(5), 367–376.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Lee, J., Cho, D., & Suh, Y. J. (2017). Purpose and meaning in life and job satisfaction among the aged. The International Journal of Aging and Human Development, 85(4), 377–402.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Markow, F., & Klenke, K. (2005). The effects of personal meaning and calling on organizational commitment: An empirical investigation of spiritual leadership. International Journal of Organizational Analysis, 13(1), 8–27.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Marriott, J. (1984). Hypnotic regression and past lives therapy: Fantasy or reality? Australian Journal of Clinical Hypnotherapy and Hypnosis, 5(2), 65–72.

    Google Scholar 

  • McGuire, D., Garavan, T. N., Saha, S. K., & O’Donnell, D. (2006). The impact of individual values on human resource decision-making by line manager. International Journal of Manpower, 27(3), 251–273.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Mills, J., Bonner, A., & Francis, K. (2006). The development of constructivist grounded theory. International Journal of Qualitative Methods, 5(1), 25–35.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Morin, E. (2007). Restricted complexity, general complexity. In C. Gershenson, D. Aerts, & B. Edmonds (Eds.), Worldviews, science and us: Philosophy and complexity (pp. 1–25). World Scientific.

    Google Scholar 

  • Neal, J. (Ed.). (2013). Handbook of faith and spirituality in the workplace: Emerging research and practice. Springer.

    Google Scholar 

  • Noguti, V., & Bokeyar, A. L. (2014). Who am I? The relationship between self-concept uncertainty and materialism. International Journal of Psychology, 49(5), 323–333.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Percy, W. (2000). The message in the bottle: How queer man is, how queer language is, and what one has to do with the other. Picador USA : Distributed by St. Martin’s Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Pirson, M. (2017). Humanistic management: Protecting dignity and promoting well-being. Cambridge University Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Reker, G. T., & Chamberlain, K. (Eds.). (2000). Exploring existential meaning: Optimizing human development across the life span. Sage.

    Google Scholar 

  • Rogers, C. R. (1956). Becoming a person—Part II—What it means to become a person. Pastoral Psychology, 7(3), 16–26.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Ryan, R. M., & Deci, E. L. (2000). Self-determination theory and the facilitation of intrinsic motivation, social development, and well-being. American Psychologist, 55(1), 68–78.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Saldaña, J. (2016). The coding manual for qualitative researchers (3rd ed.). Sage.

    Google Scholar 

  • Simpson, J. A., Weiner, E. S. C., & Oxford University Press (Eds.). (1989). The Oxford English dictionary (2nd ed.). Clarendon Press; Oxford University Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Solomon, S., Greenberg, J., & Pyszczynski, T. A. (1954/2015). The worm at the core: On the role of death in life (1st ed.). Random House.

    Google Scholar 

  • Stevens, A. (2001). Jung: A very short introduction (Vol. 40). Oxford University Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Stevenson, I. (2001). In Jefferson (Ed.), Children who remember previous lives: A question of reincarnation, rev. McFarland.

    Google Scholar 

  • Strauss, A. L., & Corbin, J. M. (1990). Basics of qualitative research: Grounded theory procedures and techniques. Sage.

    Google Scholar 

  • Strohl, J. E. (1998). Transpersonalism: Ego meets soul. Journal of Counseling and Development, 76(4), 397–403.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Strohminger, N., Knobe, J., & Newman, G. (2017). The true self: A psychological concept distinct from the self. Perspectives on Psychological Science, 12(4), 551–560.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Torrey, C. L., & Duffy, R. D. (2012). Calling and well-being among adults: Differential relations by employment status. Journal of Career Assessment, 20(4), 415–425.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Trompenaars, A., & Woolliams, P. (2003). Business across cultures. Capstone.

    Google Scholar 

  • Trzebiński, J., Cabański, M., & Czarnecka, J. Z. (2020). Reaction to the COVID-19 pandemic: The influence of meaning in life, life satisfaction, and assumptions on world orderliness and positivity. Journal of Loss & Trauma, 25(6/7), 544–557.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Ulrich, D. (2011). Leaders who make meaning meaningful. Human Resource Management International Digest, 19(2), 302–306.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Ward, S. J., & King, L. A. (2017). Work and the good life: How work contributes to meaning in life. Research in Organizational Behavior, 37, 59–82.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Weiss, B. L. (1988). Many lives, many masters. Simon & Schuster.

    Google Scholar 

Download references

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

Authors

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Ángel López Mutuberría .

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

Copyright information

© 2023 The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer Nature Switzerland AG

About this chapter

Check for updates. Verify currency and authenticity via CrossMark

Cite this chapter

López Mutuberría, Á. (2023). How People Maneuver Through Work, Life, and the Self to Find Spaces for Life Meaning. In: Maheshwari, A.K. (eds) Consciousness-Based Leadership and Management, Volume 2. Palgrave Studies in Workplace Spirituality and Fulfillment. Palgrave Macmillan, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-05839-4_12

Download citation

Publish with us

Policies and ethics