FLAME THROWER

Travis Fessler of
PB and J Circus,
photographed on
December 9, 2020.

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A cross section of Cincinnatians discuss
what their work means to them and to
the wider community, and how the pan-
demic challenged those perceptions.
P H OT O G R A P H S BY D E V Y N G L I S TA

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 WORK
IN
PROGRESS
The pandemic has certainly changed how we work.
It also has us questioning why we work.
BY L I N D A VAC C A R I E L LO
IT’S A MOLDY TALE FROM THE MIDDLE AGES, FAMIL-
iar to any kid schooled by nuns. Two men were winding
through the streets of Paris, each wrestling an overburdened cart,
each staggering to control his towering load. A passerby stopped
the first man. “What are you doing?” he inquired. “I’m hauling
rocks,” the exhausted worker snapped, sweat soaking his begrimed
tunic.
“And you?” the onlooker asked
the second man. The fellow raised his
head—eager, energized, face aglow with
a celestial light. “I’m building a cathe- Job satisfaction is linked
dral,” he replied.
Even if you didn’t have Sister Im-
to four factors, experts
maculata for precalculus, you get the say: autonomy, respect,
lesson: All work is fulfilling if you have appreciation, and being
the right attitude. If your labor feels like
hauling rocks, the implication is that
part of a larger mission.
you are the problem. You lack purpose.
But for many people, the past year
has driven a stake through the heart
of this guilt-trippy parable. Work has changed—incrementally
for some of us, catastrophically for others. There are eviscerated
businesses and jobs that have evaporated. Some workplaces have
been reshaped for the better, yes; others became infinitely more
demanding, stressful, even dangerous overnight.
And with all this transformation, no one is entirely sure what
will be permanent on the factory floor, in the shop, behind the bar,
at the law firm, on the stage. With so much uncertainty, it’s no
surprise that many people are reevaluating not only what they do,
but why they do it.
Even the most dedicated cathedral-builders may be looking at
that heavy cart these days and thinking, Rocks? Ugh.
BACK WHEN THE CENTURY WAS NEW, THE ONLINE COMPANY
Zappos introduced the (admittedly unsurprising) idea that happy
employees make for good business. And
so began a generation of TED Talks, as
academicians, economists, and CEOs
set out to explain what motivates em-
ployees.
For psychologist Barry Schwartz, a
prolific TED Talker and author of the
2015 book Why We Work, an important
part of job satisfaction is linked to au-
tonomy—that is, having some degree
of decision-making independence.
Also important is being respected and
appreciated. And the biggie, the I’m-
Building-Notre-Dame factor, is seeing one’s work as part of a
larger mission.
Certainly some of the changes we’re experiencing now can feed
those satisfactions. Consider the early days of last year’s lockdown,
when communities were applauding frontline workers each evening.
“Thousands of people became more visible and appreciated,” says
Schwartz. They were part of a huge mission—serving in a global
pandemic—and everyone recognized C O N T I N U E D O N P A G E 3 7
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their value. Will that last, he wonders,
“or will those people stocking grocery
shelves go back to being invisible?”
If anyone is feeling invisible, it’s
probably the significant popula-
tion that’s now working from home.
Schwartz says remote work has shown
that “there are huge individual differ-
ences in what people find satisfying
and helpful.” For some, WFH is a peace-
ful, productive paradise; for others, it’s
a stressful swamp where the efficiency
and gratification of face-to-face contact
has been replaced by Zoom meetings,
janky Internet connections, and juggling
grown-up work with kids’ homeschool-
ing. And since remote work is probably
here to stay to some degree (“There’s too
much money to be saved by companies
to not close down office space,” says
Schwartz), workers are trying to find
the way forward.
Elaine Hollensbe, head of the man-
agement department at the University
of Cincinnati’s Lindner College of Busi-
ness, has researched and written about
work/life balance, and she agrees that
the constant demands of remote work
have complicated things. But she points
out that 2020 created plenty of addi-
tional reasons for workers to question
whether the pay is worth the pain.
Hollensbe echoes Schwartz’s ex-
ample of frontline workers. “Health-
care providers have such dedication,
and they may charge on in spite of the
dangers,” she says. “But a grocery store
worker may be committed to the pay-
check. Then it’s more difficult to accept
the change. They didn’t sign up for a job
that’s a threat to their lives.” The media
may call them heroic, but it doesn’t feel
heroic when you’re stocking shelves
hemmed in by toilet-paper-hoarding,
belligerent, mask-resistant customers.
“It may make some feel disposable.”
The lack of in-person connection in
many workplaces has sapped satisfac-
tion, too. The freedom and flexibility
of working from home doesn’t feel like
autonomy if your boss is digitally moni-
toring you like a rabid watchdog. Virtual
cocktail hours are poor substitutes for
s p u r - o f - C O N T I N U E D O N PAG E 4 0

AGE HOW LONG HAVE YOU BEEN IN THIS JOB AND
33 FIELD OF WORK? GeneroCity since August, home-
TITL E/OCCUPATION less outreach since May 2019. WHY DID YOU GET
Lead INTO THIS FIELD OF WORK? After taking time off
Engagement to raise kids, I decided it was time to return to the
Specialist, social work field. I started in homeless outreach part
GeneroCity513
time, and within a month I knew it was the work I was
made for. BEST PART OF YOUR JOB? Hands down,
it’s the connections I make with clients and knowing
I’m helping them get the resources they need to suc-
ceed. WORST PART? Learning the amount of trauma
they’ve endured in their lives. WHAT VALUE DOES
THIS WORK PROVIDE TO THE COMMUNITY AT
I L LU S T R AT I O N S BY ( L E F T ) E M I V I L L AV I C E N C I O / ( R I G H T ) B R I T TA N Y D E X T E R
LARGE? We help Cincinnati connect as a whole com-
munity. When homeless individuals are able to have
the resources needed to help make good choices
and change, they can begin giving back as well.
WHAT VALUE DOES IT PROVIDE YOU? I’m happiest
when helping others. HOW HAS THE PANDEMIC
IMPACTED YOUR WORK? Due to social distancing
guidelines, our team has to be more strategic about
getting clients to appointments and finding them
shelter. It’s been a struggle, but the GeneroCity team
is resilient. Outreach hasn’t stopped during this
time; we’ve simply adjusted our practices to keep
meeting the needs of the individuals we serve. FUN
FACT ABOUT YOUR JOB THE PUBLIC WOULDN’T
KNOW. One of my favorite perks of the job is all of the
interesting collaborations I do with other nonprofits,
the police, and city services.
— A S TO L D TO J O H N F OX
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