{"id":4574,"date":"2020-08-24T21:14:03","date_gmt":"2020-08-24T18:14:03","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/goodjob.com.tr\/the-white-collar-workers-subconscious-and-changing-world-of-meaning-1\/"},"modified":"2026-08-07T13:55:55","modified_gmt":"2026-08-07T10:55:55","slug":"the-white-collar-workers-subconscious-and-changing-world-of-meaning-1","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/goodjob.com.tr\/en\/the-white-collar-workers-subconscious-and-changing-world-of-meaning-1\/","title":{"rendered":"The White-Collar Worker’s Subconscious and Changing World of Meaning \u2013 1"},"content":{"rendered":"

At Goodjob Human Insight & Brand Strategy, in a study we carried out in July 2020 \u2014 moderated by our clinical psychologists, our subconscious<\/a> specialists, and our insight specialists \u2014 we set out to examine the effects of the Covid-19 outbreak on the working population, looking at the experience of being confined at home during lockdown and, for the first time, working from home en masse. We surfaced the results in employees’ shifting approaches to life and work, the transformations in their personal values, the new traits they gained, and the ways they coped with the process \u2014 shaped both by what they took from their companies and by the new awareness and experiences they had with their colleagues.<\/p>\n

WE CONFRONTED THE REALITY OF DEATH<\/strong><\/p>\n

The anxiety created by the reality of death is always present within us. But we learn to live with it. When we add meaning to life, our very existence gains meaning too. In today’s modern society, work seems to have shaken human life profoundly \u2014 both in terms of time and of substance. The first of these shocks reminds us, every single day, of the reality of death that we want to forget and constantly try to ignore (for ourselves and our loved ones). We suddenly found ourselves in a world where death tolls were tracked like a stock exchange \u2014 and on a scale that covered the whole planet. Alongside that, the reality of death took hold of us through its stories. By hearing of the deaths of first- and second-degree relatives and of healthcare workers, we were constantly reminded \u2014 and are still reminded \u2014 that death is very possible for everyone.<\/p>\n

The second thing Covid-19 shook is the meaning of work \u2014 which plays a great role in giving employees’ lives meaning and fills a large part of daily life. Because the pandemic shook ways of working and the work\u2013life balance, this branch that employees held onto was badly shaken too.<\/p>\n

WE REALIZED WE ARE HUMAN<\/strong><\/p>\n

For many employees, the pandemic led to new searches for meaning. It made us stay alone with ourselves. In doing so, employees reassessed the things in their lives in order of importance. We can express this effect under three main headings.<\/p>\n

We addressed the first effects of the outbreak, the course it might take, and the three types of human behavior that developed in response, in our first study<\/a>. There we explained why some people, under the pressure of the pandemic, stocked up on toilet paper, why others ignored the outbreak, and why still others simply took off and fled.<\/p>\n

During lockdown, the restriction of freedom and the limits placed on outside life created \u2014 in almost all participants \u2014 an effect of turning inward, setting out on an inner journey, and entering into existential questioning.<\/p>\n

With behavior developed against the outbreak, the easing of initial worries, and the relief of fears about being laid off, this inward turn appeared once people had grown used to the process \u2014 and with it came the surfacing of suppressed emotions, passions, and dreams. We witnessed people reassessing the repeating cycles, the unreciprocated sacrifices, and the toxic relationships in their lives. By the end of the struggle to fight and cope with the crisis of Covid-19, and of the inner journey they went through, we observed in participants an effort to make life meaningful again and a tendency to review their personal values.<\/p>\n

Personality-Transforming Effects and Their Gains<\/strong><\/p>\n