Work is the process by which an object’s energy is transferred to or from another object. This energy is often measured in units of joules and kilocalories. In addition, it may also be expressed as the scalar product of a force and an object’s displacement or distance with direction. This type of work is commonly referred to as power.
Many people think of their work in the everyday sense and use the term to describe a wide variety of activities. However, some of these everyday activities are not really work in the scientific sense. The scientific definition of work requires three key ingredients – a force, a displacement and the cause of the displacement. These requirements make the term ‘work’ very specific.
For an activity to be considered ‘work’, the force exerted must cause a change in the displacement of the object. The change in the displacement can be either positive or negative. The direction of the displacement is important as well. If the displacement is towards the force, the work done will be positive and vice versa. The magnitude of the force is also important as it is directly proportional to the work done. This means that the larger the force, the more work will be done.
A good example of this can be seen when a waiter holds up a tray high above his head while walking across the room. While this is certainly hard work for the waiter, it does not necessarily do any work in the mathematical sense of the word. This is because the force is not always in the same direction as the movement.
Another important point to understand about work is that it can only be transferred from one object to another by a direct transfer of energy. This is why the scalar product of a vector (force) and a vector (distance) is equal to the work done. This is why the expression ‘work = force * distance’ is used.
Some examples of things that we typically consider to be work but do not actually do any work are a teacher pushing against a wall in frustration and exhausting themselves, a book falling off a table and free falling to the ground and a weightlifter lifting a barbell above their heads. These activities are all considered to do work but do not meet the criteria of transferring energy as they are simply exerting a force on an object without changing its position.
As such, when thinking about what work does for you, it is important to consider the intellectual challenges that you are presented with and how this contributes to your happiness. It is also important to take stock of the ways in which your job provides you with a sense of stability during rocky times in your life and to consider how work can help you develop and maintain relationships with people who are important to you. Lastly, you should consider the ways in which your job has shaped who you are as a person and the values that you hold.