Great Work at the Intersection of What's Calling and What's Broken

Definition

Great work shows up at the intersection of two forces: (1) what calls you—the opportunities and possibilities you sense around you that align with your values and strengths, and (2) what's broken—the pain points, inefficiencies, and problems in your world that need fixing. The book frames this as finding the lock that matches your key: you've developed a sense of who you are (your key); now you're looking for something to unlock (the broken thing you can fix).

The critical insight: Great work is not wanted by the status quo (organizations prefer maintaining good work), but it is needed by reality.

In the Book

Map 5 uses the metaphor of a hiking trip: "The busyness of our lives can often be like that initial climb...our attention is on where next to put our foot." But to spot great work opportunities, "you need to get to the lookout" and scan the landscape. The book guides people to identify areas where there might be opportunities to do more great work—in projects, relationships, processes, team development, skill building.

Map 6 explicitly addresses "what's broken." The book's central claim: "What pains you can also inspire you." Pain points reveal frustration with status quo, which is often the starting point for people to say "I can't take it anymore. I've got to do something different." The example of Carlos, an accountant, shows how he identified that his firm was "in a rut" and that poor client relationships were a pain point—this became the seed for his great work project.

The book notes that "Great Work is often not wanted"—organizations talk about wanting innovation but are "deeply rooted in delivering Good Work and sustaining the way things are, so there's minimal interruption to that Good Work."

Why It Matters

This framework prevents great work from becoming either self-indulgent (just what makes you happy with no connection to real problems) or martyring (solving everyone's problems but nothing that matters to you). It channels meaning into action by locating where your energy and the world's needs align. The practical payoff: identifying pain points makes it easier to find opportunities that aren't just mentally interesting but emotionally compelling enough to sustain when the work gets hard.