What Is Work?

Work, also known as energy transformation or energy conversion, is the transfer of a force’s potential energy into an object’s kinetic energy. In physics, work is defined as the product of the force strength and the displacement distance (d) or W = F d. If the force is constant, the path of displacement is one-dimensional and work may be computed as the area under the curve (W) of the tangential component of the force along this path, where the angle th with respect to the displacement is given by the cosine of th (or, alternatively, fd/f).

Alternatively, work can be defined in terms of a body’s acceleration (d/t), where the work is equal to the body’s change in kinetic energy: W = -D E kt.

In everyday use, work is often described as the effort that someone puts in to complete a task or chore. For example, a housewife might put a lot of work into cleaning the bathroom or preparing dinner. In a scientific context, work is also referred to as the “square root of minus one-half of the change in the kinetic energy of the object”.

A common misconception about work is that it only transfers energy if there is a displacement. This is not the case, however. If the force is perpendicular to the displacement, then it does no work. This is why a superhero, for example, can prevent a truck from rolling down a hill without having to actually move it; he just has to hold the truck stationary.

The unseen, on the other hand, is a key part of the future of work and involves the imaginative identification and solution of unseen problems and opportunities that haven’t yet emerged. Rather than just identifying and solving a problem or opportunity once, it should be an ongoing, integral part of work that is woven into the fabric of day-to-day operations.

This approach is a powerful way to unlock employee passion and create greater meaning in the daily work of every individual. It can shift the future of work conversation away from one centered on fear and adversity (institutions versus individuals) to one centered on hope and opportunity, igniting more worker passion over time and creating more value for both institutions and workers alike. As the world of work evolves, organizations that reframe work in this way will be best placed to retain top talent and compete effectively.