What is effective work?

Question from the Internet:

“How does one reduce meaningless work and turn out effective work?”

Your question brings up additional questions.

What is work? What is effective work? Effective to whom?

By definition “work” is something we need to do against our will, it is not natural to us, thus we need payment, a reward for it to make it worthwhile for us to work.

This payment can be something non-material, it can be some form of respect, some form of pleasure, can be freedom, or simply survival, but it always means some extra effort, exertion that requires reward, replenishment, recharge.

How can measure if something is effective or not? Only when we have a final goal, purpose for the work when we have a final product, and even a timeframe for the work.

Then who makes the calculations about that final goal, about the timeframe, who assigns the work to the workers? Is it me deciding, is it certain individuals, groups of individuals deciding, or it is some form of collective decision or even decided by “external” laws, obligation like working in order to fullfill wider laws, principles of a nation, the world or even Nature?

Since we all exist in Nature’s fully integrated and interdependent system where everything is defined, governed by strict, unchanging, and unforgiving laws, the most effective work we can do is performing the predetermined, obligatory role, purpose, function in the system Nature’s evolution decided for us.

This is something we need to do, perform against our inherently subjective, egocentric, and individualistic nature, that wants to work, the effort only for its own selfish pleasure, fulfillment.

And the reward we receive for this work is that we receive the chance to become “truly Human” beings, consciously, proactively aligning ourselves with Nature above and against our instincts, and by that we become Nature’s only conscious, integrated but independent observers and partners.