My Approach and Framework
My Approach and Framework
Work should help us live full lives—lives rich in meaning, growth, connection, and decent livelihood.
Too often, work becomes an end in itself instead of a means for attaining what really matters in organizations, society, and a person’s own life. Yet when designed and managed wisely, work can not only be productive but also contribute to human flourishing.
My framework to support careers rests on four essential pillars:
Values-based: Career directions and decisions should be guided by clear, personally meaningful values that provide purpose and coherence over time.
Dynamic processes: Career development involves continuous cycles of goal setting, resource and barrier assessment, action planning and execution, and reflection and revision. These processes make careers value-directed, proactive, and adaptable.
Resource-focused: Sustainable career progress depends on building, maintaining, and using personal and contextual resources—such as skills, motivation, relationships, and opportunities—to achieve valued goals.
Whole-life perspective: Managing one’s career requires considering the entire life context, integrating different roles and responsibilities, and ensuring balance and sustainability over time.
Ten Principles for Work that Supports a Full Life
Work serves life, not the other way around. Its purpose is to support well-being, not to demand single-minded devotion.
Sustainability over the lifespan. A good career maintains health, personal growth, and purpose across decades.
Values give direction. Careers grounded in authentic values foster stability amid change.
Adapt while staying true. Goals and plans must evolve as life unfolds; flexibility is a virtue, not a weakness.
Build and utilize resources. Flourishing work depends on how we cultivate and utilize skills, motivation, relationships, and supportive contexts.
Positive experience is essential. Joy, engagement, meaning, and connection are important outcomes of good work.
Contribution beyond the self. Work gains lasting meaning when it benefits others and society.
Many valid orientations to work. Some find a calling, others seek stability or livelihood—all are legitimate if they support a good life.
Leadership as stewardship. Good leaders empower people to develop and manage their careers sustainably.
Context matters. Supportive policies, culture, and job design are preconditions for positive work.
