LETTER FROM
THE PRESIDENT
In 2008, researchers at Washington
University conducted a survey on behalf of the
American Association of Zoo Keepers (AAZK).
The survey’s purpose was both to assist the
AAZK in understanding its membership and to
promote academic research on highly
committed professionals. They studied
zookeepers because, despite low salaries and
limited opportunities for advancement, for
most it was primarily about their love of the
job. The researchers established several
findings from their work. The most compelling
was that a strong sense of “calling” was
central to how zookeepers felt. To feel called is
to feel that one is “meant” to work in a
particular occupational role because of a
unique background, personal passion and/or
the possession of a natural ability or quality.
The work suggests that individuals who
identify work as a calling have a different
perspective. Despite degrees of personal
sacrifice, having a sense of calling can give
life meaning and purpose. Zookeepers
believe their work gives them personal
identification, meaning and importance.
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The sacrifices include compromises on pay,
personal time and comfort.
“People will work hard for money; they will
work harder for other people. But people will
work hardest of all when they are dedicated
to a cause.” While money is the economic
incentive and other people offer socioemotional compensation like recognition,
esteem, status, friendship. The ideological
incentives – values, mission, purpose and
conviction – come from the dedication to a
cause. For zookeepers, the ideological
incentives prevailed.
People who view their work as a calling
are unique. They generally find more
meaning and identification in their
profession. They view the world through an
ethical lens. They hold very high
expectations for their organizations.
In today’s world, people find it increasingly
more difficult to maintain connections
between themselves and their work. The
power of a calling is that it makes a person’s
work morally inseparable from his or her life;
it incorporates the self into a community
whose activity has meaning and value in it.
You can find people with a sense of calling in
just about any work setting. Ultimately, it has
more to do with conviction than context.
It has been my good fortune to have
worked with several of these individuals at
Baylor. Not surprisingly, recent job
solicitation ads that we have run suggest:
“Here, you’ll learn the difference
between being a health care provider and
being one who truly serves others. You’ll
have more than just a job at Baylor Scott &
White Health; you’ll find your calling”.
Any job can be seen as a calling as long
as the individual integrates work into their
life, imbuing it with one’s own values and
sense of purpose. What’s your calling?
Rowland K. Robinson
President
Baylor Health Care System Foundation
[email protected]