Working as a careers reporter for Insider, Shana Lebowitz Gaynor noticed that one particular story topic always caused readership to skyrocket: why and how people quit their jobs. She wondered if she was playing into the readers’quitting fantasies, and started thinking about other avenues to workplace fulfillment.

The result of that curiosity is Don’t Call It Quits: Turn the Job You Have Into the Job You Love, published in August. The book shows that employees have more options–and agency–in their current workplace than they might think. Lebowitz Gaynor joined me for a fireside chat during From Day One’s October virtual conference on continuous learning and career growth to talk about why the book is resonating after several years of workplace upheaval, as well as her biggest reporting takeaways and first steps employees can take to job satisfaction. 

Our conversation, and the book, started with a disclaimer: this advice isn’t necessarily for everyone. “I hope that many of the insights and advice can help people across the board, regardless of industry or occupation,” Lebowitz Gaynor said. “But at Insider, I generally write for knowledge workers. I think that sometimes the strategies that can help knowledge workers are the same ones that can help people in other segments of the workforce, but sometimes they’re not.” 

For those who are interested in finding more workplace fulfillment, and are not yet ready to take the plunge into quitting, the book is broken down into three categories: evaluate and reevaluate, take action, and give yourself other options. Lebowitz Gaynor packs each section with insight from experts and seasoned employees like Dean Carter, who for many years led the HR function for Patagonia, but shared with her his experience working for Sears as the company was failing. 

“I really appreciated what Dean told me, and sometimes I even think about it and apply it in my own job and career,” Lebowitz Gaynor said. “If you’re in a situation like that, you have to put your head down and focus on the work you’re doing, focus on the work your team is doing and what you are doing for your team. Think about how the work you’re doing now is going to help you in your career, getting your dream job.” 

Lebowitz Gaynor makes a consistent argument that workers have more agency than they think. “It’s both about that broader sense of feeling that you have agency you can then exercise in your job and career, and also about the day-to-day, like how am I feeling at work today?”

We discussed how this book plays into the workplace upheaval caused by Covid-19, which has most recently resulted in phenomena such as the Great Resignation and quiet quitting. Lebowitz Gaynor proposed an alternative to the burnout behind quiet quitting: “You can do what you can at work, and maybe even let your manager know that you’re doing what you can and not going over the top, and stop fixating on your job as the be-all, end-all of your life and your identity.”  

Lebowitz Gaynor poses a question in her book, “Do you need to find meaning in your work?” She deliberately leaves it open for the reader to answer. During our conversation, she shared some insight from a PR professional who felt like her work wasn’t meaningful enough. After a perspective shift, “she feels like her work is meaningful enough, because it’s allowing her to do something she’s good at and provide for her family,” Lebowitz Gaynor said. “For her, there is meaning in that right now.” 

Lebowitz Gaynor also pointed out how employees have so much opportunity to define themselves, and find meaning, outside of work. The book talks about workers who have found meaning in volunteering or part-time positions, invest in activities unrelated to work, and take steps to create more space and time away from the office. 

“In some cases, it’s okay to expect less from your job,” she noted. “Which is to say that your job doesn’t necessarily have to be the place where you earn money, make friends, spend all your time, derive all your self worth, and put all your emotional energy.”

As we closed, Lebowitz Gaynor shared her own journey of writing this book while navigating the pandemic, getting pregnant, and giving birth. “I think my relationship to work has changed,” she said of the experience. “And I think the big takeaway for readers is that you have more agency over your work experience than you think, and while there are plenty of things that are out of your control, there's still a lot that's in your control. And that you can change.” 

Emily Nonko is a freelance journalist based in Brooklyn, New York. In addition to writing for From Day One, her work has been published in Next City, The Wall Street Journal, The Guardian and other publications.