Shop Class as Soulcraft

Matthew Crawford is a philosophy graduate turned think-tank employee turned motorcycle mechanic. An unusual trajectory that gives him a unique insight into life on both sides of the white-and blue-collar divide.

It is his contention, in this book, that it’s time to rethink and perhaps upend the narrative that higher education and knowledge work offer the only path to a successful and fulfilling life.

The central argument of this book is the fact that working with our hands and using, making, changing, and repairing tangible things makes us connect with reality in a way that working with screens and spreadsheets does not.

Whether you're fixing an engine or building a bookshelf, the efficacy or not of your work is obvious. The engine either runs or it doesn't. The bookshelf stands straight or it doesn't. This direct feedback, Crawford argues, is inherently satisfying. And there’s a palpable sense of accomplishment when a problem is solved and something is made whole again.

This kind of feedback is often missing in the corporate world where it can be difficult to see the impact of the work we do. Crawford suggests that this disconnect contributes to the pervasive sense of meaninglessness that so many people feel today.

He writes that we too often dismiss skilled manual work because we assume that it doesn’t require any thinking. This is patently not true. You can’t repair a motorbike, build furniture, or fix a leaky faucet without engaging in problem solving and applying practical knowledge gained through years of experience.

This book challenges us to reconsider our biases and to recognize the profound value of skills that build, fix, and maintain the physical world around us. It's an invitation to rediscover the joy of making things with our hands, the satisfaction that comes from learning and mastering a skill, and the value of work that engages both the hand and the mind.