Spirituality at Work: Usefulness of Analogy

and Questions

Donna Sandberg, Career Path

Julia Yang, Governor State University

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Abstract–Work, like all tasks of social living, is the movement connecting

the individual longing and laboring to oneself, others, and the community.

Interestingly, the work place is often dominated by the perceptions of

necessity and productivity. The emotional and spiritual needs of our

work are, for the most part, ignored. Career professionals, therefore, are

challenged to seek creative ways to consciously facilitate the spiritual

connection for individuals who are engaged in transformative processes

of career development and decision making. In this article, the authors,

reflecting on the premises of career construction theory and Adlerian

psychology, present the use of analogy and Socratic questions with

career transitioners in private practice and counselor training settings.

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Philosophers have taught valuable lessons about purpose and meaning

in our live(s)/work for centuries. Work, often seen as a secular space, is in

fact a spiritual pathway through life in which we find expression of our self

and our love for life and the commonweal (Yang and Waller, 2005). Work,

like all tasks of social living, is the movement connecting the individual

longing and laboring to oneself, others, and the community. Interestingly,

the work place is often dominated by the perceptions of necessity and

productivity. The emotional and spiritual needs of our work are, for the

most part, ignored. Career professionals, therefore, are challenged to

seek creative ways to consciously facilitate the spiritual connection for

individuals who are engaged in transformative processes of career

development and decision making. In this article, the authors, reflecting

on the premises of career construction theory and Adlerian psychology,

present the use of analogy and Socratic questions with career transitioners

in private practice and counselor training settings.

Spiritual worldviews (i.e. theism, atheism, and agnosticism) are

embedded in various traditions of psychology and counseling. A literature

review suggests that spirituality is not only discussed in the classic writings

of various theoretical orientations (e.g. Freud, Jung, Adler, James, and

Maslow) but also recognized in contemporary theoretical frameworks of

faith development, systems’ theory, cognitive theory, social learning theory,

narrative theory, and the positive psychology (Chua, 2003; Kane, 2003;

Kern & Curlette, 2004; Miovic, 2004; Moss, 2002; Poll & Smith, 2003;

Powers, 2003). Furthermore, Miller (2002) stated that eastern spiritual

traditions like Hinduism, Taoism, Confucianism, Buddhism, and Zen also

have influences on Western psychology, medicine and counseling practices.

Although there seems to be a long history and recent resurgence of

interest in work spirituality (Goodman in Capuzzi, 2006), there is little

agreement on definitional expressions of what spirituality is as related to

work. Spirituality is a unique and subjective experience and therefore, very

difficult to define. It is often regarded as a journey of finding meaning, the

breath that brings us to life and a space for sacred connections (Leibrich,

2002). Spirituality, as defined as by Bloch and Richmond (1998), is “the

ability to find communion with that which is the deepest within ourselves

and the greatest outside ourselves” (p.18). A trans-theoretical pattern is

noticeable in literature recognizing spiritual fulfillment as present when

the individuals experience a sense of harmony or unity internally and

externally. Dimensions from which harmony evolves are centeredness,

connectedness, being, believing, belonging, becoming, and transcendence.

The challenge remains as to how career counselors facilitate their clients’

attainment and/or restoration of such space for harmony in the face of

tenuous nature of work life where they are sometimes being required to

recover from sudden change or even crisis?

In