What does spirituality mean to you?

A recent e-mail I received touched on several incisive subjects, but one particular point struck me. It read: “I’ve been reading your column in part because I was hoping I might get a better understanding of what ‘spirituality’ means. Actually, for me, 95 percent of what you write would fall more under the rubric of ‘Common Sense and Civility in the Workplace’ than ‘Spirituality in the Workplace.”’

I could do worse than being saddled with the “Common Sense and Civility” tag, which I will wear with some pride. But I found it interesting the reader had not gleaned anything about my “spirituality” perspectives.

In a previous column I have said “spirituality in the workplace should mean that we work to become ‘co-creators’ with God to make better products, more loving workplaces and to be better stewards of our resources.” I have written, “Spirituality of work is about bringing all our longing, all our search for the transcendent, our entire quest for deeper meaning, and all our deeply held values to work. When we do that, our work is profoundly transformed and we are transformed by our work. That process allows us to make our work something more than a mere job. It allows us to find that great purpose and meaning for which we all search.”

And for those who confuse dogmatic religion with spirituality, I have said, “We can be spiritual beings at work without wearing sackcloth and ashes and without proselytizing.” Writing this column, reading my e-mails and observing organizations through my speeches and seminars have reinforced those beliefs, but also allowed me to realize that spirituality at work is more basic than we might think.

All the controversy over who did what wrong in the wake of Hurricane Katrina helped me realize again there is genuine holiness in making things work well. The most deeply spiritual thing we do at work is participate in a community with co-workers to make things better. When we make better products, serve customers well and treat them as if they are truly special, we are spiritual. When we contribute to making our community, no matter how we define it, a nicer place, we connect to the transcendent.

If you believe you are passing through this world with no real purpose, then spirituality in work is not likely to be important for you. And if that works for you, fine. But if you believe there is some particular reason you’re drawing air on this earth, then work is one of the most important outlets you have to realize that special sense of purpose.

We fulfill our purpose and pursue the spiritual through what my e-mailer called civility and what I call a moral duty to serve, enhance and enjoy our neighbor. When the waitress accepts criticism and works to correct it, that’s spiritual. When the waitress cops an attitude and wants to fight with the customer, she denies the spiritual and serves the self.

The other day I encountered an acquaintance I had heard was sick. I asked him about it and he told me about his ruptured disk. I expressed a sigh of relief that it was not cancer or some other fatal disease. He harrumphed, “This is bad enough.” I quickly realized I had forgotten another crucial aspect of spirituality at work. If I truly engage with another person’s perspective I will meet them where they live and we’ll both be better.

That ruptured disk is going to force him to change his work and disrupt his life. I needed to appreciate his anxiety and his pain. When I did not, I failed to find communion with him, which could connect us both to the transcendent.

Making things work well, fulfilling our moral duty to our neighbor and genuinely engaging in meaningful relationships with co-workers are crucial to spirituality.

Tip for your search: Try to spend a few hours a day shedding your self-interest. Do your work with high quality as the only goal without trying to make it as easy on you as possible. In the same way, pay special attention to the people you encounter and try to understand their perspective and shed your own.

Resource for your search: “Church on Sunday, Work on Monday” by Laura Nash, Scotty McLennan (Jossey-Bass, 2001)