28: Mental Health for Professionals

How we grow up shapes us—all of our thoughts, lifestyle, values, and more. Growing up in a culture where work is the only thing people care about profoundly impacted how I value myself. In Turkish culture, our lives are less valuable than our professions. Societal structures are created according to work. The more money you had, the more people respected you. Before the 2010s, people had more respect for specific professions such as lawyers, doctors, or engineers. These days, it’s only money. But we still keep asking kids what they want to become when they grow up. These kinds of questions falsify children’s thinking about their values. They conceive work as a personal value. They place their values in the wrong place. Instead, we should show work as something they do instead of something they are. Later on, this perspective makes them more open to various options.

• Related Note(s):
  • 8: Growing in the Career;
  • 27a: Increasing awareness of the actions and behaviors;
  • 41: Characteristics of Creative Work;
  • 41b: How to discover creativity?;
  • 30b3: The Case of Happiness;
  • 52: Personal Values;
• Source(s): Think Again by Adam Grant;