What is the Meaning of Job Involvement?

Involvement Re-Defined!

How do you define success? This question may seem out of context here but it is NOT! How involved you’re with your job depends on how you answer this question. If you had a vague answer like ‘money = success’, then you need to be more clear and specific in your definition of a job.

Those who measure success by money are often those who do not rise to levels that wouldn’t have otherwise been a barrier for them. All the successful people that we see around are role models and they have left behind a ‘hint’ for us to grab and follow. So how do they define job involvement?

• Dedication: People who are successful today define their success on the level of satisfaction. True enough, you might be earning in thousands of dollars, but if you’re not satisfied with your job you won’t be able to rise. Total dedication to your work is required and that equals job involvement. It is about how serious about your work and getting it done.

• Sincerity: Many of us would confuse dedication and sincerity and tag them as the same. But this is not so – your dedication stems from the sincerity you show at work. You might have a dream job, but the sincerity with which you’re doing it defines your job involvement more than dedication itself. ‘Dedication’ is therefore an offshoot of sincerity.

• Working ‘Smart’ but not ‘Hard’: The call of the day is well defined in the 5 words that make up the bulleted point! Hard work can take you places but smart working can take you places faster than you’d thought! Two men cutting are might be working; one of them puts in more effort and time in cutting trees but at the end of the day, his output is less than the other person? Why? One common and obvious answer would be that the man getting done more in a shorter time has a sharper axe! So you see – what is meant by working smart?

• Money Comes Last: Money is no doubt a motivational factor but money is not everything. For most of the ‘successful’ people, job involvement defines the satisfaction they get from work and vice-versa. When starting a job, money keeps you going but once you’re too involved with the job, it takes a back seat and your ‘involvement’ becomes the priority. No wonder, specialists are held in so high regard! Finding a job is easy but finding an involving job is even more difficult. Even if you do not find a job that interests you; if you’re involved in it, you’ll get through. Work involvement requires little inspiration and lot of perspiration!