It's an interesting and we'll documented theory, but I still had the feeling the author was confusing two concepts, that is "one's place in a company" and "one's place in the world". To put it in another way, it's like the author confused the personal search for meaning with the search for a job. If I read the article and substitute the concept of a job with the concept of one's personal meaning of life, the article makes a lot of sense. There is no need for cynism regarding the whole Pixar theory. That being said, I still skimmed over the last part of the article, so I may have missed an additional argument.
I feel like the meaning in life in America is perpetuated to be centered around your job. People often judge your life based on your job, income, level of comfort and such. Often people who aren't productive members in our society are seen to have less value and an even lesser meaning of life. We are practically raised to believe that without a good job you can't live a fulfilling and meaningful life. I feel this article is pretty much spot on. Not to be disagreeable, just how I see it.
> Often people who aren't productive members in our society are seen to have less value and an even lesser meaning of life. We are practically raised to believe that without a good job you can't live a fulfilling and meaningful life. You're spot on! The perception in America in regards to the type of job you have is judged by everyone.
Well there's another way to look at it. Coming from a more socialist place than America, I was often told that it is always possible for an American to make a living out of whatever he or she likes (and finds fulfilling). For example, Elon Musk's meaning of life is to lead humanity to Mars, and the best place to make a living out of that dream was in America.
This fact (whether it's true or not) leads to the conclusion that if you have a job, it's because you like doing this thing and you find it fulfilling. Meanwhile, in my immediate surroundings, I usually meet people doing a job they don't dislike to much and finding meaning in their hobbies.
The way to approach this problem, in my opinion, is to first find then niche that interests you, and then base a market or job behind that. That makes much more sense than chasing after jobs for value without anything behind the job. You could end up majoring in accounting or computer science because you thought you would make bank but it so happens to turn out that you hate the subject and aren't intrigued by it.
I would really miss technology by living a simple means is all I have wanted for as long as I can remember. My best friend and I have been talking about finding a place where we can go live outside of society. A place to live off of the land and do our own thing. A lot of personal effort involved but at least at the end of the day I see the results of my work and it's for me, not for something I don't believe in.