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Barry Schwartz's book begins with that question. What gets us to the office, or the factory, or the work site every morning? 

Is it money? Schwartz says that's far too simple an answer. 

Is it satisfaction? For some people, yes, but as Schwartz says, "for most of us, work is monotonous, meaningless and soul-deadening." According to a Gallup poll, which gathered data from 230,000 workers in 142 countries, only 13 percent of workers feel engaged by their jobs.

So why are so many people doing something they don't enjoy? And more importantly: What can change?

Schwartz digs into a range of workplaces to investigate trends and patterns that lead to happiness in the workplace. He explores everywhere from hair salons to boardrooms and finds that the type of job has very little to do with the satisfaction level. Instead, it's the workplace culture that matters. Good workplaces, rather than what popular culture views as "good" jobs, make the difference.

In his book, he outlines why everyone — from bosses to entry-level employees — should care about creating effective workplaces:

Schwartz joined MPR News' Kerri Miller to discuss the modern workplace, how things have gotten off track — and how they could be improved.

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A recent Gallup poll found that only 13 percent of workers feel engaged by their jobs. So why is everyone doing something they don't enjoy? Barry Schwartz tries to find an answer.

As the recent New York Times article about work culture at Amazon demonstrated, some American workplaces are relentless, demanding, high-stakes places. And they can be highly fulfilling for the people who succeed. This hour, we'll talk about workplace culture and what we know about what makes work fulfilling with psychology professor Barry Schwartz. He's author of a new book called "Why We Work", in which he asks some big questions including "Why is it...that as capitalism developed, it created a model for work in which opportunities for the non-material satisfactions that might come from it - and inspire better work - were reduced or eliminated?"

Guest: Barry Schwartz, author of "Why We Work" and a professor of psychology at Swarthmore College

'Why We Work': It's more than money

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