Chapter 3.9 – Quality of life, working climate and productivity

Excerpt from the book »Gradido – Natural Economy of Life«

»The economy – especially small industry, services and art – flourishes on our planet as never before. On the other hand, everybody only works as long as it’s fun for them. That’s why there is no over-production that pollutes the environment unnecessarily.«.  

– Joytopia

If everybody does what they love, how will that alter the quality of life? What impact is to be expected on working climate and productivity? How satisfied will the customers be? Would everything that is needed be produced at all? And who does the dirty work?

Anyone who has attended a good personality training course or success seminar knows that you can only be really successful when you do what you love. All really successful people do what they love. Or can you imagine a piano virtuoso who does not like music, a top athlete who hates training, a Steve Jobs who finds the iPhone stupid or a Pope who does not like praying? Only when you do what you love will you achieve the quality and productivity that it takes for exceptional performance. When you do what you love you experience work as pleasure. You are very happy to do more, work longer and better and achieve better results. You see problems which arise as welcome challenges to develop yourself and the quality of your work even further. Naturally you also enjoy being together with colleagues or business associates and customers; for with them you share the common stage, on which you are allowed to live out your favourite occupations.

Doesn’t every employer wish for such motivated employees? And doesn’t every employee wish for such a fantastic boss? Isn’t every customer happy to have such competent and cooperative suppliers and business partners?

With unconditional participation the gradido model gives all people the guarantee that they are allowed to do what they love. People who no longer know what they love receive valuable support from a loving community to develop their full potential. As everyone is already provided for through unconditional participation, they will only take on additional work that meets the standards set by unconditional participation regarding working climate, meaningfulness and pleasure. Potential employers and customers face the challenge of meeting these demands when they make offers and place orders. Hence, all work on offer has the potential of being loved.

»Yes, but who does the dirty work?« – »Who will still want to clean?« – »Who will work as a dustman?« – I can hear you asking such questions now. Let me answer these questions with two stories from my personal experience. 

During my school time a cleaning woman came to our house once a week – always the same woman over many years. Let’s call her Ms Miller. On this day of the week – I think it was Thursday – we boys had to watch our behaviour. We had the greatest respect for Ms Miller and her word was law. We sometimes found toys we had not cleared away in the dustbin. But that did not often happen since we knew that everything had to be tidied up before 8.00 on Thursday mornings. We had to get used to that. My parents much appreciated Ms Miller as in her way she taught their sons to be a bit tidy at least. From time to time my parents invited her to dinner.

Can you imagine that Ms Miller loved her work? Every Thursday morning she was the main person in our family, the undisputed boss. She not only had her work under control but also the two rascals. And she was highly respected by her employers.

About 25 years later I spoke to a young man in my neighbourhood. He told me that he had applied for a job as a dustman. The job was super – in the fresh air all day, no need to think and with good pay. While his contemporaries were still going to school or training for a job, this young man already had a good income and could afford things young people dream of, such as a nice car, a good flat, holiday, etc.

I don’t know if that young man is still a dustman today. And as chance will have it, a dustcart comes past outside just as I am writing this. I cannot see any dustmen in the street but only a rubbish claw controlled by the driver that empties the dustbins into the container single-handed. Driving such a dustcart seems to be a rather pleasant job. I would also enjoy doing it from time to time.

What can we learn from this? Firstly, that opinions as to what kind of work is enjoyable and which not differ from person to person. What is horrible for one person can be another person’s dream job, particularly when it is well paid. Besides that, hard jobs are increasingly done by machines, as in the example of the rubbish claw on the dustcart.

Dirty work or dream job – that is only an individual point of view. There are people who like doing any kind of task when they receive sincere appreciation and good pay. That also applies to dangerous work: there are people who seek adventure and danger and would be bored by a normal life. Nature provides for everyone and ensures that there are also people to take on every challenge that presents itself.

Every job will have to meet an important requirement in order to find someone to do it: the work must be meaningful. Hardly anyone will put themselves in danger or do something unpleasant if they see no sense in it. In the Natural Economy of Life earning money is no longer the main sense and purpose of work. Money is no longer an instrument of pressure, even less an instrument of power. Money has become one of many incentives. It can, as before, motivate people to do something they would not have done without money but it is no longer the sole motivation. Meaningfulness, working climate, enjoyment, fun, appreciation and thanks are other motivating factors which must add up. They all have in common that they enhance the quality of life of all those involved. They thus serve the threefold good – the good of the individual, the good of the community and the good of the big scheme of things.

In such a wonderful working climate people gladly perform well, particularly when they can enjoy their earnings without any deductions.

Advantage 28 – Higher incentive to perform well

Excerpt from the book »Gradido – Natural Economy of Life«

»Nothing splendid has ever been achieved except by those who dared believe that something inside them was superior to circumstance.«

– Bruce Barton

American author

One might think that the incentive to deliver good work would decrease with a basic income. But is that really the case? In order to make a judgement, let’s look at the interaction of the following parameters.

It is correct that a basic income, be it active or unconditional, makes provision for everybody. This means that the sheer survival instinct no longer serves as an incentive. Hardly any applicants will be found for unpleasant, boring, dangerous and degrading jobs but most of this work will be rationalised away anyhow. Moreover, it does not serve to enhance the workers’ quality of life: on the contrary, most people who have to do such jobs today are emotionally detached from their work. They will quit their jobs immediately they find something better. Therefore we would do well to let machines do more of this type of work or at least make it more agreeable, more interesting and easier.

Motivation and the incentive to perform well increase in all other jobs. Why is this? People who are provided for by basic incomes only take up jobs they enjoy and/or which are well paid. They pick employers or customers who offer an excellent working climate and meaningful tasks. Conversely, this means that employers will make every effort to make the working conditions as good as possible. Good working conditions allow people to work well and with motivation; they are glad to perform at a good level.

Thus seen, all unfavourable circumstances which have hitherto been able to stop »normal« people performing in an outstanding manner have been done away with. It used to be exceptional people who performed in an exceptional manner. The Natural Economy of Life creates circumstances in which every completely normal person can develop their full potential and accomplish true miracles in their very personal field. And a high incentive exists on the financial level as all income is tax-free.

Advantage 64 – High quality of work and life

Excerpt from the book »Gradido – Natural Economy of Life«

»When you do what you love and are ready to take money for it,

you cannot avoid being successful!«

– Samuel Woitinski

German author and coach

According to statistics, 75% of employees have emotionally detached themselves from their jobs. They only still go to work because they have to earn money. They are compelled to do a job they dislike because they first of all have to earn their living. Without this pressure they would stop today. You do not need much imagination to realise how much their well-being and the quality of their work suffers from this attitude.

Once again, it will be quite different with the gradido. Gradido means »thanks« and a basic income of a thousand gradidos means as much as »A thousand thanks for being with us!«. With the basic income the community thanks each of its members for being a full member of the community. Everybody is welcome with the very personal talents life has given them. As a full member of the community everybody can contribute with their inclinations and abilities.

When people do what they love, they do it especially well. They do it with love, joy and enthusiasm. They are »intrinsically« motivated from within. This inner motivation is of much more value than all the money in the world; money is only one among many means of motivation.

During the transition from the old system to the gradido it could be an interesting task to work out each person’s inclinations and abilities together with them and develop their full potential. Many people have forgotten how to feel and articulate their true needs. However, there are good methods of doing this, which have proved themselves a thousand times.

When people have relearnt to sense themselves with all their wishes, dreams, likes, talents and abilities they will become »their real selves« again. They begin to shine and blossom. The gradido system gives them the right to unconditional participation – the right to contribute to the community with their individual potential and in return receive their active basic income.

Everybody is blessed with a hitherto unknown quality of work and life, which previously was reserved for just a few privileged people. Those who had already achieved this are among the winners in this society. They are more than averagely successful in their professional and private lives. In the gradido system the majority of people will be several times more successful, more motivated, more productive and happier than before. Their quality of life is considerably enhanced and with it the quality of their work. 

Advantage 66 – Significantly less negative stress

Excerpt from the book »Gradido – Natural Economy of Life«

»The all-time drama has actually had only a single topic –

the inability of people to live together.«

– Gerhard Bronner

Austrian musician and cabaret artist

There are two kinds of stress –positive »eustress«, which motivates and spurs us on to do our best, and negative »distress«, which wears us down. This section is concerned with the negative kind of stress – distress. Distress results from pressure, fear, threats and so on. In earlier times it served as a way of reacting to life-threatening situations in an appropriate way. Our ancestors had three possibilities of dealing with dangers – fight, flight or play dead. These three survival strategies have proved to be successful and we can still observe them in wild animals today.

In today’s civilised world it is mostly not possible, or at least very inappropriate, to react to the threats of daily life with the fight or flight options. A person who has trouble with their boss can generally neither beat him/her up or run away. Hence, there only remains the third option of playing dead. However, our behaviour has an impact on our inner life. When we live in a situation where we frequently have to use this strategy we die inwardly and each time we play dead a part of us dies. We become frustrated and demotivated and in the end fall ill.

 

In the Natural Economy of Life we have a far greater freedom of choice as to how we want to react, for we are no longer as dependent on our jobs as nowadays. We still will not beat up our bosses but we can defend ourselves in another way when we feel that we are being unfairly treated. And if that does not help, we can quit without having to put up with social disadvantages.

Moreover, unconditional participation gives us the chance to do what we love and so there is already much less reason for conflict from the start. When we do what we love we do it very well and thus have great chances to receive recognition and appreciation. Should conflict situations still arise, we can defend ourselves since we have the right to unconditional participation and cannot simply be dismissed. Besides, we would only have to endure such a situation for two hours a day, if need be. Should the situation repeat itself, we would change our job and thus also the human environment in which we are acting. The normal state is therefore deep satisfaction and fulfilment in the self-chosen work; and we can cope with the rare stress situations.

If we work in the free economy, either instead of or in addition to the active basic income, we do not have to put up with unfair treatment from either our employer or customers. We are not obliged to do the work to assure our livelihood since our existence is always secured. For employers this means that they have to create a pleasant environment for their employees, otherwise they would lose them. For customers it means that they have to treat their business partners in a fair and friendly way. The customer is no longer the only king: we have all become kings.

Negative stress is a frequent cause of illness in our times. If we have no stress, we stay healthier both mentally and physically.

Advantage 69 – Good working climate

Excerpt from the book »Gradido – Natural Economy of Life« 

»Pleasure in the job puts perfection in the work.«

– Aristoteles

Greek philosopher

Pressure, stress, rush, bullying, health risks – those are just some of the widespread epiphenonema in the workplaces in the so-called civilised countries. In the Third World things are often much worse. Men, women and very often children as well are kept as slaves for starvation wages. They sometimes have to toil 16 hours and more a day in sweatshops under inhumane conditions. Such inhumane circumstances can only exist as long as people are compelled to accept them because of poverty.

The introduction of unconditional participation puts an end to this. After that employers have to court their employees: they have to offer them more than just money. The workplace and working climate must be agreeable so that people enjoy meeting their colleagues there. Work becomes a sought-after social event, the hub of communication between people. Employers who do not provide their employees with this will soon find themselves alone or they will quickly learn to adjust. Today there are already exemplary companies we can learn from in this respect.

The working climate will thus quickly improve significantly. As you have already guessed, this will again have an positive impact on the health of all those involved. 

Advantage 70 – Meaningful work

Excerpt from the book »Gradido – Natural Economy of Life« 

»You need to see a task in front of you and not a quiet life.«

– Leo Tolstoy

Russian writer

A pleasant workplace with an excellent working climate is one thing and meaningful work is the other. Of course, there will always be people who will go along with any nonsense if the atmosphere is good and the money is right. However, many people will attach importance to doing meaningful work. As nobody is forced to do work contrary to their nature and employers have to court employees, it will be easy to pick your job. Anyone seeking meaningful work will find a job.