10 Core Concepts to Support Good Work
Lynn Barendsen
What types of support do students need to be able to do good work in the classroom, in their efforts outside the classroom, and eventually, in the workplace? What skills and strategies will most prepare students for our rapidly evolving working world?
The Good Project Team has been studying good work for three decades and our current definition includes three key elements. Good work is excellent (high in quality), ethical (sensitive to impact and socially responsible) and engaging (meaningful and purposeful).
However, the world of work is changing all around us. New categories of work (for example, gig workers) have emerged, technologies such as AI are impacting how work gets done, inequities are increasing. It’s important to consider these contexts and continually revisit our understandings and terminology.
Our definitions are only useful if they continue to evolve; as a result we’ve recently examined all of our core good work concepts and worked to update our understandings in this blog series.
In addition to the three Es (excellence, ethics and engagement), we have identified seven concepts that are key to supporting good work in the classroom and beyond. Below, we provide a brief overview of each of these concepts and their relevance to good work.
Let’s begin by unpacking the three core elements of good work.
The concept of excellence remains key - excellence as an ideal to strive for - we want to understand why some individuals want to carry out high quality work and are able to sustain that excellence over time. Excellence in work is about more than simply meeting a particular benchmark (like a grade). Instead, excellence is related to the particular qualities, or behaviors, we work to cultivate in ourselves, setting and meeting personal standards. Excellence involves growth, is supported by insight and reflection and guided by personal values (more on those below). But, considering today’s mental health crisis, specifically in youth, we’ve learned to modulate our discussions about excellence. Depending on the context and particulars, always striving for excellence or “best” isn’t necessarily a good thing; some days, and in some contexts, “really good” might well be enough.
Ethics are perhaps more relevant than ever before. We need individuals who care about the consequences of their work and who strive to have a positive impact on the world. Ethics, like excellence, are informed by values and are often considered when we’re unsure about our decision-making. Often described in the context of a choice (or an ethical dilemma), ethics are usually understood as “right” vs. “wrong”, yet it’s rare that choices are that straightforward or clearcut. Difficult ethical decisions can be helped by frameworks, reflection and mentors.
The concept of engagement has to do with finding meaning or purpose in work. Individuals may find it impossible to continue to push for high quality, ethical work if they aren’t deeply engaged in their efforts. Often, people will have more energy when they’re engaged in their work. Connected to the concept of flow, we think about engagement as also connected to commitment, happiness, or satisfaction in work. It’s also possible to be over engaged, and issues of work/life balance are important considerations and something that can vary quite a bit depending on cultural contexts.
Our understanding of good work includes several additional core concepts, key in the development of skills and strategies to support good work in practice.
Values guide and define us.
Responsibilities help us to understand ourselves, where we fit within our various communities and the world.
Models and Mentors inspire and support us.
Reflection is a crucial life and work skill for processing and learning.
As we reflect and consider our values, we may also consider our long term goals, or mission. Mission can be considered at an individual level or as part of a school, organization, or workplace.
We can also consider the mission of the organization(s) we exist within. If we find we share major goals or share a common mission, we’re in alignment.
If not, when various stakeholders are in pursuit of different goals, misalignment occurs.
Like reflection, recognizing, unpacking, and ultimately, solving dilemmas are critical skills in support of good work.
As should be clear by now, these ten concepts are interdependent. In other words, it is difficult, if not impossible, to consider responsibilities without some understanding of values. The concepts of alignment and misalignment make very little sense without the additional context possible with an understanding of mission. These concepts evolve not only as a result of context and culture, but as a result of this interdependence. As a team, we’ve recognized that we must continue to examine and update our definitions; in other words, we must establish our own habits of reflection in our efforts to research, understand and encourage good work.
All 10 Good Project Core Concepts