Thought for the Day: After all of the fluff about passion and employee engagement, this emerging trend focuses on the value to be found in a good day’s work. Somehow, in our quest for wealth and status, we lost sight of the fact that even a menial job can be a great job. It’s not really in the hands of the employer, it’s in the hands of the person working.

• Just Work
  Having a basic job is an asset. If you live in Merced, CA, where unemployment is in the 20s, a job is an asset. This essay from earlier in the Spring, looks at the value of plain and simple work.
• Steve Boese on his First Job
  Somehow, a bunch of liquour is the rite of initiation in some Enterprse HR shops. This story makes  an onboarding experience seem much more like an on-flooring exercise.
• First jobs – seeking meaning in the ordinary
  As a drycleaning clerk, HRMaven found and returned people’s treasures.
• “Escape Arts in Delusionville”: My Average Life
  Zen Master John Tarrant thinks about ordinariness and its importance.
• Employee Engagement: Treating the Symptom Instead of the Disease
  The problem with focusing on “employee engagement” is that makes it sound as though employees were disengaged because of the lack of employee engagement programs. But engagement programs treat the symptom not the disease The real disease is poor  Employees don’t need programs and engagement strategies. They need managers with vision, an understanding that employees want and need to work to the best of their abilities.