In the hustle and bustle of the corporate world, James Dudas admits it’s easy to forget one essential thing: There is life outside of work.
“My goal has always been to keep a balance in my life,” said Dudas, of Lake Zurich, senior director for corporate relations at Allstate Insurance Co. in Northbrook. “But let’s face it — it’s easy to get absorbed into work and out of touch with what is really important in your life.”
But Dudas has found a way to bridge the gap between home and boardroom. He has brought his work space alive in a sea of personal mementos: a gallery of snapshots from favorite family vacations; a photo of Jacobs Field, home of his beloved Cleveland Indians; a collage of nature, including a feather and photo of a heron, reminding him of his affinity for the great outdoors; and an Emerson quote about success that speaks volumes about his belief in keeping his spirit alive in the workplace.
For Dudas, this almost gallery-like workplace altar taps into the essence of “who I really am and reminds me constantly that there is much more to me than just what I’m doing in this office,” he said.
Certainly, this personal shrine of sorts underscores efforts by a growing number of workers who are carving out sacred space at the office in their quest to integrate their professional, personal and faith lives.
The office of Mary Pat Hinton of Wheeling, a director of corporate relations at Allstate and Dudas’ co-worker, is chock full of Elvis photos and collectibles, which serve as reminders of her Mississippi roots. In addition, there are photos of her friends’ and family members’ children; a bulletin board of postcards from the Tetons, a French vineyard, Canada and other “dreams I have of places to go”; and a collection of Dilbert cartoon magnets.
“I tend to work a lot of really long hours, and this gives me a sense of this being my place, with my stuff, my corporate home,” Hinton said. “A lot of people think it’s a mess with all this stuff, but I say, `Hey, it keeps me connected to me.’ “
Psychologists believe that surrounding oneself at work with objects that have special meaning frees the subconscious to do its work. Spiritual types claim it is a way to pack faith into everyday life. And workers agree: These personally crafted sacred spaces — whether they are seashells, snapshots of best friends, Dilbert cartoons or motivational quotes and testimonials to the resilient — help them stay connected to their deeper away-from-work being.
“It’s part of human nature for people to routinely personalize their space just as animals mark their territory,” said Rev. Larry Gorski, an Arlington Heights clinical psychologist who also is a priest for the Archdiocese of Chicago. “But there’s also an underlying trend for people today to want to simplify their lives, to get in touch with their souls.
“This search stretches to their everyday lives, where even their computer takes on a relevance as part of something that helps them create and get in touch with their deeper being and ultimately with God. By decorating their office space, they’re creating a visual reminder that God is there in their work lives and that they are spiritual beings. It frees them to go deeper into their creativity.”
These north suburban folks underscore a national trend among American workers who increasingly are creating office altars as “touchstones to connect with the divine,” said Peg Streep, author of “Altars Made Easy: A Complete Guide to Creating Your Own Sacred Space” (Harper San Francisco, $16).
“Many people are tired of the splits in our lives, and they are looking for ways to integrate and provide more meaning to their 9-to-5 lives,” Streep said. “Sacred space is a physical place where God can be glimpsed or experienced, where you can get in touch with that which is larger than ourselves. Building an altar of your favorite spiritual collection at work is a way to acknowledge the sacredness of what is there in your everyday life.”
Karen Williams of Chicago, a quality development director at Square D Co. in Palatine, carries this premise one step further. With 30 to 40 percent of her time spent traveling, much of it overseas, she has created what she calls “my traveling altar,” a black pouch stuffed with special items made for her or given to her by friends and family that “help me keep connected to the people who are most important in my life.”
The minute she arrives in a hotel room, she assembles the “altar,” which includes a candle from a women’s group she belongs to, a cross, a marble polar bear (which signifies strength), a dove of peace, a Jewish prayer, and a deck of cards appropriately dubbed “52 Relaxing Rituals,” plus other sentimental items.
“It helps me when I’m alone in a foreign city doing work to remember who I am and what my deeper purpose is,” Williams said.
For Cara Stansbury of Arlington Heights, photographs of her friends and family are perched everywhere around and on her office desk at Baxter International Inc. in Deerfield. These mementos serve as a spiritual tonic on days “when I’m really stressed out.”
“They remind me of the people who are important to me,” Stansbury said. “There are also pictures of some of my most fun times in my life.”
But experts are quick to point out that expressing yourself at work is a relatively new phenomenon.
“The corporate world was very sterile up until a few years ago,” said Allan Schnarr, clinical psychologist and professor at Loyola University in Chicago who specializes in interpersonal relationship skills in the workplace. He also conducts seminars on psychology and spirituality topics at corporations throughout the Chicago area.
“All the downsizing and regionalization has created fewer people doing the same amount of work and a lot of stress and burnout,” Schnarr said. “For the employees, it’s created a hunger to try to cope, to find more meaning in their lives and to try to examine and balance them. That’s put corporations under a lot of pressure to offer employees opportunities and situations to experience more quality time and, therefore, to do their job well and feel less stressed.”
Bringing favorite mementos to the office and allowing this means of personal creative expression is one of the many ways corporations are responding to the “inner” needs of employees “to lead more balanced, quality lives,” Schnarr said.
Michelle Rathman, presiydent of Impact Communications Inc. in St. Charles and a mother of two, has turned her office overlooking the Fox River into an “all-senses appealing” work space. The carefully thought out shrine includes aroma therapy candles, soothing music and spiritual tapes, primary-colored clocks that line the wall, a gigantic vase filled with fresh flowers, a collage of photos of her family and best friends, and a framed cartoon of Cathy saying, “Hold all calls, I’m having a nervous breakdown.”
“My job is extremely stressful, and all these things help me stay centered to who I am at the root of my soul,” Rathman said. “They keep me balanced.”
Certainly, there’s a sense of magic in personal shrines, said New York writer Francine Maroukian, who has been studying the phenomenon for years and has written extensively on the subject. But, she added, “it is not our sacred objects that reveal our faith; it is our faith in objects that makes them sacred.”
Ultimately, “we’re all altar builders by nature,” said author Streep. “This is just a more meaningful, creative way to bring our collections and our faith to work.”
