This is post 2/2 from reading Sean Tucker’s book, The Meaning in the Making.

I’ve finished my second summer read, The Meaning in the Making, by Sean Tucker. The book is ‘delicious’ and ‘meaty,’ and there is so much ‘food for thought’ that I wish to share them all here. But I’ve picked this quote for this post:

Applying labels and placing things in neat boxes is always reductive, and when we find ourselves obsessed with labelling and boxing the work of others, it’s a fairly sure sign that envy is lurking there. —p.172

The above quote from the book’s chapter on “Envy” reveals a hidden truth about our professional lives (it certainly did in the author’s).

In the creative and professional world, it is common to categorize and label work, skills, or people. While this can be useful for organization and understanding, it also highlights a potential downside to this practice. In the context of envy, though, our tendency to label often reveals more about our own insecurities than the limitations of others.

For example, in the workplace, envy can manifest as an obsession with categorizing others’ talents and achievements. We might label a colleague as just an “admin” or pigeonhole another as the “numbers person.”

But what’s really behind this labeling? Often, it’s our own insecurities. By boxing others (and ourselves) into narrow categories, we might be trying to diminish multifaceted talents or justify our perceived shortcomings.

On the flip side, labeling is often necessary for our work, but what if our penchant for labeling is holding us back? For example:

• When we rigidly categorize products, services, or methodologies, we might miss opportunities for cross-pollination of ideas or revolutionary breakthroughs that defy existing categories.

• When we are being overly simplistic in customer segmentation, we might miss opportunities in product development or marketing.

And so on.

However, when we recognize the role of envy in our labeling habits, this awareness can be transformative. It invites us to:

Reflect on our motivations: Are we categorizing to understand or to compare and compete?

Embrace complexity: How can we appreciate the multifaceted nature of talent and the work of others without reductive labels?

Focus on growth: Instead of envying others’ skills, how can we cultivate a mindset of continuous learning? Of celebrating and complimenting others?

—

For my next summer read, I’m jumping into A Court of Silver Flames, the fifth and final book in the ACOTAR (A Court of Thorn and Roses) series by Sarah J. Maas.