Giving Compass' Take:

• In this Medium post, the author argues for taking a long, hard look at our efforts at system change, wondering if much of it is surface. Is the game rigged?

• This essay closely ties into recent criticisms of elite philanthropy, that good intentions aren't enough to create real social progress. We need to thoroughly dig deep into the root causes of our problems, even if it means having awkward, uncomfortable conversations.

For more on this debate, check out this piece from Anand Giridharadas, author of "Winners Take All."


Doing good is becoming the new currency of success for my generation of Western, middle-class millennials who’re learning that putting work purpose before paycheck brings more happiness.

 

Scores of us are leaving profit-driven careers or, like me, avoid getting one in the first place, in order to pursue more meaning as social entrepreneurs, charity workers, in philanthropy or international aid, corporate social responsibility or voluntourism. Social media is sprawling with offers of coaching, self-help books, and retreats in the great outdoors to plot our journeys into more purposeful careers.

We all share a yearning for purpose, a desire to know we’re leaving this world in a better state than we found it. But looking around me, purpose has become a fashionable yet hollow slogan — a catchphrase for anything that isn’t primarily about making big bucks and applies to anything that involves rolling up your sleeves somewhere south of the Equator.

 

As Courtney Martin writes, “if you’re young, privileged, and interested in creating a life of meaning, of course you’d be attracted to solving problems that seem urgent and readily solvable.” But, she explains, readily solvable they are not.

Read the full article about getting uncomfortable with work purpose by Agnes Otzelberger at Medium.