New podcast ep! How to make work meaningful
Welcome to At The End Of the Day. I’m Hannah Sung and this newsletter is in podcast mode! Read on for what you’ll hear in this week’s episode.
I’ve had what feels like a million jobs. Not all of them were a good fit while others have been legit dream jobs.
One of my favourite jobs of all time was wrapping gifts at the mall while I was in university back in the 90s. The service was free, people were ecstatic and the packages became gorgeous after a few minutes with a hot glue gun, pinecones and ribbon. It was an extremely satisfying way to get paid on an hourly basis.
(I’m laughing a little remembering this era because today, my children get gifts wrapped in newspaper or reusable bags—I can’t stand the waste of disposable paper anymore.)
The job felt great because it was brief and in my happy place (I was a total mallrat growing up). Adulting at work is harder.
I’ve come a long way in the decades in between and I’ve learned over the years what I love at work (change and building big, new projects) and what are my dealbreakers (bureaucracy and no trust among colleagues).
Is this how I want to spend my time on this planet?
When life is really busy, it can take a crisis to force us to take a good, hard look at what we do on an everyday basis. A death, or a pandemic, or an accident or depression. Any or all of these things can help us see that nothing in life is guaranteed.
During these times, we might ask: Do I find meaning in the ways my paid work fits into the rest of my life?
Is this how I want to spend my time on this planet?
That’s the focus of this week’s podcast episode and to discuss, I’ve invited my closest colleagues and company co-founders, Nana aba Duncan and Garvia Bailey.
Together, we created the Media Girlfriends podcast company in 2020. I wrote about it last year, in conversation with Garvia, here and here.
What is Media Girlfriends?
Media Girlfriends began as a podcast Nana aba created herself in 2016, at her kitchen table. Since then, we’ve launched a scholarship, crowdfunding over $70,000 for students, especially Black, Indigenous, women and gender non-binary people going into journalism, media, communications or tech.
Now we make podcasts together for a living. It’s been an amazing experience so far, where I get to follow my curiosity, dive into new topics, research, work with collaborative, highly emotionally intelligent people and somehow, build a business, day by day, with people who, even on the toughest days, make me laugh.
How to make work meaningful
If you’re feeling a little lost at work, this episode is for you. We’ve been there. You can have a before and after.
Nana aba and Garvia have many hard-won lessons. I have a few myself. We’re taking the best of our good experiences (and what we’ve learned from the best in the biz) and trying to change the rest, beginning with ourselves.
Not everyone has options at all times throughout their life. Sometimes work is just a means to getting paid, and there’s perspective to be had there, too. Taking care of people’s needs, including your own, is meaningful.
Listen to our conversation here on Apple Podcasts. Thank you to everyone who has written a rating or review!
You can also find “At The End Of the Day with Hannah Sung” on your favourite podcast app. Thank you to Media Girlfriends, and everyone who works with us, for making every project, challenge and work day feel worthwhile and filled with purpose.
And if you have any words of wisdom on making work meaningful, or a story you want to tell, my inbox is always open. Just hit reply to this email.
You get a book! And you get a book!
Last week’s episode featured a conversation with author and filmmaker Sarah Polley and I ran a book giveaway.
Congrats to the winners, Katharine and Tara! Your copy of Sarah Polley’s Run Towards The Danger will be in the mail soon, thanks to Penguin Random House Canada.
Have a wonderful weekend — stay healthy,
Hannah
✨✨✨ At The End Of the Day is edited by Laura Hensley. The podcast is produced by Olivia Trono ✨✨✨
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