Imagining a future of work that works for all
Imagine a world where work gives you the life you want: Your job gives you purpose and the paycheck you need. You have an equal shot at moving up and earning more, staying where you are if you love what you do, or moving on. There’s a balance of power, and you have a voice if the scales start to tip.
Your workplace is located in the community where you want to live. You can also work from home, or from a lake in Maine or a co-working space in Chicago or a vineyard in Australia. You have time for family, friends, community, and yourself.
You have the chance to switch careers, change your schedule, go back to school, take time off, gig for a while, start your own thing, or just pause. You can make professional choices that suit your needs at every stage of your life without ruining your present or compromising your future.
Sound familiar? Not really. Desirable? Yes. Possible? We believe it is.
Right now, work is broken. Work has an outsize influence on our lives, defining our identity, location, community, structure, lifestyle, and purpose. And work itself isn’t working: Too much work for some and not enough for others, stagnant wages, long commutes, toxic cultures, and even too many hours sitting at a desk are hurting our physical and emotional well-being. Work is preventing many of us from providing care for our families and doing the things we love. All of this productivity may be good for the GDP, but it’s bad for our lives and it’s bad for the planet.
At the same time, megatrends like technology, longevity, mass migration, and climate change are transforming work. We’re on the brink of a cultural shift, with people demanding greater agency, balance, sustainability, and purpose both inside and outside their workplaces.
Now is the time to fix work. But what does that look like?
In this blog, we are sharing the stories of the individuals, organizations, employers, and communities experimenting with new approaches to work: The single mom-of-three who turned her passion into a rapidly growing organization that’s changing what it looks like for people to experience nature and the outdoors. The pro triathlete and energy bar entrepreneur who invests time in training and his growing business without compromising his role as a dad and husband. The founder of a co-working space dedicated to providing everything professional women need all under one roof. The thriving Oregon town that people move to for the mountains and river and beer and community, and then figure out work. The entrepreneur who is on a mission to help one million people build more purposeful careers and lives.
By exploring what these people are doing and why, what’s working and what’s not, we hope to paint a picture of a better future. We aim to inspire more people to rethink work—to make work work so more people can live the life they want, engage with their families and communities, and ultimately create a better world.
And we want to hear from you—whether you have changed your own relationship with work, or you lead an organization that’s making work better for people, or you live in a community that encourages people to work and live their best lives. Send us a note and share your story.
Photo by @artisanalphoto.
