The word "toxic" has taken on special meaning when applied to the workplace. When we hear someone speak of toxic bosses, toxic coworkers, or toxic working environments, we usually have a pretty good idea of the character of the relationships to which they are referring. We might not know the details, but we certainly know that something has gone wrong.

Most workplaces are not usually toxic, nor are most working relationships -- in fact, quite the opposite. But most of us do run across workplace toxicity from time to time, and when we do it usually has a way of spoiling the fulfillment and satisfaction we might hope to find in our work. We naturally want to work in an environment that is friendly, collegial, and allows us to be productive and to grow, but sometimes a problematic relationship will put all of this at risk.

Viewing the toxicity through the traditional concepts of sin, alienation, and reconciliation can be helpful. And here the story of Cain from the fourth chapter of the book of Genesis in the Bible might have some important insights for us.

Our goal should be to restore relationships, build community, and remove the dysfunction so that our work can be more effective, more fulfilling, and more beneficial for ourselves and for others.

There are great many products and services, and a great many jobs, that are needed to build and maintain a flourishing society: those who produce food and other goods, distributors and retailers, communicators of various kinds, accountants, lawyers, and administrators, and many, many others.

And here we have a problem – – a problem of perception. The contribution of the people doing many of these jobs goes unappreciated, at least in religious contexts.

Our religious traditions tend to emphasize healing the sick, feeding the poor, and volunteering for church missions. All of these are important, but sometimes we overlook all the different ways people contribute to the well-being of others in their daily work.

In this episode, we try to come to grips with this issue using Isaiah 61:1-4 as a staring point.

Humility, properly understood, can make an important contribution to our spiritual and psychological flourishing, and can have very important benefits for our work life.

It is helpful to think of humility as having to do with a reduced focus on one's own self. The person with humility is less concerned with maintaining a high degree of self-importance, or high social status, and is therefore more open to information and insights from others, whether it supports his or her own viewpoint or not. This can be very important in our work life.

If we are more open to information that has not been filtered through our own ego needs, we are more likely see things as they really are and to act with wisdom. We are also more likely appreciate other people, and the contribution they make; this is bound to lead to stronger relationships, greater collaboration, and more effective leadership.

By clearing away excessive self concern, humility can help us to engage life more deeply and be more fully alive. And this is bound to be enormously valuable in our daily life, and for the people with whom we come in contact.

In this special edition we interview solar energy professional Tom King. Tom has a very interesting story to tell about finding and following a calling, and the ups and downs this can involve. Along the way he has worked in a variety of fields -- coaching college sports, construction, information technology, a small food start up, produce distribution, and now solar energy. Tom has picked up several important insights which he shares with us.

This is our first interview; let us know if you like the format and we will do more.

Have you ever worked in an environment that seemed designed to crush the human spirit and to eliminate any sort of initiative or creativity?

Maybe you have also seen working environments that seem to liberate the human spirit, workplaces where people seem to be more alive, more purposeful, more engaged -- and also happier.

This raises the question: how might we encourage more of the latter? How might we create environments that liberate the human spirit rather than suppress it?

We explore this question in this episode, and along the way draw out insights pertaining to our psychological and spiritual growth and development.

The story of the Wise Men and King Herod is one of the great stories of the Bible. One way to look at the story is as a conflict between two human drives -- the desire for stability and order, on the one hand, and the quest for the sacred on the other. Either drive can be corrupted, but both are necessary for human flourishing. We discuss the story and the possible implications for our own quest for the sacred.

The story is from the New Testament, Matthew 2:1-18.

No matter what we see as the primary purpose of our work, it is clear that if we can find more meaning in it, then we are likely to be more effective, more purposeful, and happier. For some people, this means seeing their work as their calling.

In this episode we talk about what it means to have a calling, and how we might develop or find it. While people have used several very different definitions, we will focus on what we see as its key aspects.

Most of us have had times when we seem to be going backwards in our career or in our work life. Or maybe times when we seemed to be dead in the water while everyone else was moving forward.

But in these situations are we really moving backwards? Or might there be something going on, out of sight – – something that is laying the foundation for new growth – – something of which we might be completely unaware?

There is hope!

It is not unusual for people, as they get older, to look back on those times when they thought they were stuck and to realize that these periods were important for their subsequent growth.

We might not be able to change our objective circumstances, at least in the short run, but we can control our response to these circumstances, and in some ways our response is likely to be the most important factor over the long run.

Your current situation is not the end of the story.

There are spiritual practices that might help us become alert to the spiritual aspects of our daily lives; one especially powerful one is called the Examen.

The Examen was developed by Ignatius of Loyola about 500 years ago. He developed as a way of knowing when we seem to be moving towards God, and when we seem to be moving away from God. The practice involves looking at our recent life (perhaps the most recent day or half day) in considerable detail, and being alert to spiritual clues.

In this episode we look at some of Ignatius' story and how he came to develop the Examen. We then discuss how we might use the practice today to become more alert to what might be spiritual aspects of our busy days. (Time: 9:60)

We all know how painful and dysfunction stress can be. It can damage our health and limit our effectiveness. But there are some things we can do.

In this episode, we will begin by focusing on the work of psychologist Richard Lazarus and the importance of how we appraise potentially stressful situations.

Lazarus takes what he describes as a relational approach to stress and the related emotions – – in other words, he sees stress as originating in an unsatisfactory relationship between the environment and the individual, as appraised or evaluated by the individual.

This last element, appraisal, is key. The different ways individuals appraise the situation is part of the reason why different individuals respond to situations differently, and why the same individual can respond to essentially the same situation in different ways at different times. One especially important aspect of this appraisal process is the determination of whether or not we have the resources (both tangible and intangible) necessary to deal with the situation and the possible outcomes. If we do not believe we have the resources, then our stress level is likely to go up to high levels. If we do believe we have the resources, then we are more likely to deal with the situation as a manageable challenge.

We also draw out possible spiritual and religious connections.