Worthwhile (which, BTW, is one of the great publication names of all time, online or offline) had this interesting item a couple of days back under their “thought for the day” heading. It’s an (ahem) worthwhile issue for communicators to ponder:

Entrepreneur and environmentalist Paul Hawken: “Every age has a critical shortage. In the industrial age, it was money. People in industrial society were willing to give up time for money, and in many areas of the country that is still true. In a postindustrial age, the critical shortages are time and meaning. And people will only give up their time for meaning.

“It follows then, that one of the challenges facing American business is to add meaning to commercial life. That’s difficult for a company to do unless it is able to impart to its employees the meaning of the company. A lot of companies have lore; they have history; they have tradition; they have huge markets; but they have no meaning.

Ask yourself, your clients and/or your employer: What’s your meaning?

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