In 1990, psychologist Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi published a book called Flow: The Psychology of Optimal Experience. This book is basically about the states of mind (as in the picture below), and how to keep the mind in optimal state, namely in flow. This state of flow is applicable for lectures, hobbies, sports and also the jobs of people. By being in flow, people can both enjoy whatever they do, and also, so to say, get the job done. Therefore, Csikszentmihalyi seems to be solved the efficiency vs meaning crisis for work. Furthermore, he also examined money/materialism factor and it's effect on well being too. I've read this book last semester, I've learn a lot, and found plenty of useful things for real life.
P.S. This book is not like one of those pseudo-scientific self-help books. It contains real and scientific data, and shows ways to be in flow.
Check this wikipedia page for more information.
You can also watch Csikszentmihalyi's TED talks video below, but beware, he is not a good speaker! You may get bored because of the tone of his voice, even though he is talking about some brilliant stuff!
As you stated, a true contradiction exists between the ideas of Smith and Marx. In one hand, it is very important to get the best out of your workers due to the factor of efficiency, while on the other hand workers seem inseparable from robots when they are specialized and do the same thing over and over again. I like the idea of the book you mentioned and will have a look at it during the summer. Thank you :D
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