When contemplating joy, it is common to equate it with happiness. Is happiness sufficient? My concern regarding happiness is that it is too often viewed as something that can be manufactured. It is perceived as a temporary state entirely contingent upon external circumstances. We might ask, “Do you find happiness in your work?” the response could be affirmative—or perhaps not. However, happiness is frequently linked to an event, occasion, or experience.

One of the most potent barriers to finding joy in our work is the amount of toil we endure.

What do I mean by toil?  In any work, there are tasks you simply must do because they make everything else possible.  But too often, as senior professionals, you can spend more time on tasks well below your pay grade.  This contradicts the values you aspire to and fails to reflect your hard-won skills, knowledge, and experience.