Because the American workplace is largely a service-oriented one, today's workers are finding it harder to find satisfaction in their daily efforts because they lack one critical element to their daily work--a sense of tangible accomplishment.  Think about it. On an average day, what can a service worker point to and say, "I accomplished this.  I feel good in achieving this."

Today's Wall Street Journal and columnist Jared Sandberg touched on this conundrum.  How can worker's stay motivated when they have no tangible achievements to celebrate?  Where is the sense of accomplishment?

Take a moment to review the tasks and workflows under your responsibility.  How many are tedious parts of a very long process?  How many produce a defined, finished result?  How many of these results, by themselves, have enough value that the person completing it can feel satisfaction?

One of the root causes of poor morale and employee turnover comes from employees who feel their efforts have no value.  When was the last time you analyzed your workflows as it relates to employee morale and turnover?  It might make sense to do so.