Last night, we watched an independent film called Outsourced. I thought it was a documentary when Jeanine first put it in our Netflix queue, but the Seattle Times review explained that it was, ‘œa thoughtful satire that looks at the human face beyond contemporary frustrations associated with the global economy.’

With the backdrop of a Mumbai call center, it ended up being a light, romantic comedy. The call center manager (an American) tries to explain our business practices and consumerism to the confused new employees. As he falls in love with one of them, there are lessons to be learned about globalization, work and life. It’s a pleasant and warm surprise of a story.

Jeanine thought I would like it because it had something to do with ‘œbusiness.’ For some reason she thinks I only see the world through the eyes of capitalism. For example: whenever we’re at a locally-owned restaurant, I’m always pointing out who I think is the likely proprietor. She wonders why I feel the urge to observe and make a guess. I find it interesting when you see people doing their ‘œwork’ in a different way than those around them. You can typically spot owner/operators because they treat work differently and it shows.

In an article at The Ingenesist Project, the author explains why a person’s work has psychological and spiritual value that must be respected. He references Buddhist Economics, a theory by E.F. Schumacher, an Oxford economist and protégé of John Maynard Keynes.

Schumacher was among the first to argue that economic production was too wasteful of the environment and non-renewable resources. But even more than that, he saw decades ago that ever-increasing production and consumption ‘” the foundation of the modern economy ‘” is unsustainable.

Are workers just an ‘œexpense’ to be reduced as much as possible?

Schumacher argued that an economy should exist to serve the needs of people. But in a ‘œmaterialist’ economy, people exist to serve the economy.   Notably, he argued that labor should be about more than production because a person’s work has psychological and spiritual value that must be respected.

Instead we consider goods as more important than people and consumption as more important than creative activity. It means shifting the emphasis from the worker to the product of work, that is, ‘œfrom the human to the subhuman.’   We have outsourced our soul.

When people love their work, they seem happier. It’s not about making more money. Tons of studies and much has been written about money and happiness. In the end, happiness boils down to managing what you already have.

What’s your meaningful work? How do you think one’s career plays into all of this? How does our culture and consumerism impact happiness?

Photo credit: stock.xchng.