Do What You Can, Not Your Job

From the Amazing Mind of Jessica Hagy

From the Amazing Mind of Jessica Hagy

Your job description is the bare minimum required to do your job.  It’s a suggested starting point not a prescriptive action plan.

Seeing that Venn diagram reminded me that I’ve never been more frustrated than when I felt constrained in my ability to make a difference.  When I failed it was because I succumbed to the thinking that ‘this is how things are done’ and allowed myself to be defined by my title, job description or the perception of others.

A couple off-the-cuff thoughts on what I was doing differently during the times I was successful:

  • Rewrite the rules in your favor. There is something you can do better than most people.  Usually it’s what you really enjoy doing.  Know what that is and find ways to put more of it into your job.
  • Pay attention. Two eyes and ears.  One mouth.  Use them accordingly.  Identify the holes that need filling even when the person needing them filled can’t define the hole.
  • Ignore others. Not everyone, of course, but there are people who will defend the status quo.  There is always a better way to do something.  Don’t stop looking for it when others tell you to.
  • Shed the ego. It’s difficult for others to argue when you have the team’s or the company’s best interests at heart.  Likewise, when you focus on the positives and what could be you aren’t attacking anyone personally or how they’ve been doing things.  The professional rewards are a byproduct of putting the team ahead of yourself…usually.
  • Find like-minded people. To me, this is different than finding allies.  That turns it into a contentious political game.  To me, it’s about finding people who will help strengthen your resolve and help you get things accomplished.  Many hands make light work after all.  Completed action usually has few detractors.  Ideas have a shitload.

These aren’t universal, of course.  And there will be work environments in which this is easier to do than others.

But, the bottom line is that to make yourself invaluable you have to do more than check the boxes.  Be proactive in defining your role.  It certainly makes the game easier to win.

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For more intelligently funny truisms in diagram, graph and equation form, check out ThisIsIndexed.

Posted by brentdaily on August 17, 2009 | 2 comments so far | Culture, Inspiration, Mindset, Rules

You Get What You Expect

photo by milkaela

photo by milkaela

Confirmation bias is a powerful thing.  Micro-managers have to micro-manage because their employees miss deadlines, deliver half-baked work and are lazy.

While some may see this as a chicken and egg problem, I’m firmly in the chicken camp.   Employees don’t start out looking to cut corners and do late, mediocre work.  People will usually live up to the expectations you have of them.  If your actions make it clear that you expect them to be middling employees they’ll live up to that.  If you expect your employees to look for every excuse possible not to work, they’ll live up to that as well.

Mistrusting your team, establishing low expectations and circling over their every move does nothing to engage an intelligent employee.  A vicious cycle ensues where the employee resents their boss and thus does not want to do good work for him and the boss therefore feels the need to get even more involved in order to get things accomplished.  Nobody is going to win.

Start by thinking what you want to get out of your team, set the expectation with each of them and then act accordingly.  When you treat people like smart, responsible adults you’ll get that behavior in return.

Posted by brentdaily on March 16, 2009 | Add a comment | Engagement, Management, Rules

Ditch Rules and Value Values

While not entirely applicable to knowledge businesses I ran across this list of workplace rules at a Chinese keyboard manufacturer via @BillCarroll.  It was too shocking, not to pass along.  Imagine if you got docked three days pay for leaving your workstation.  I’d be out a years pay by Thursday.

It got me thinking about the differences between our workplace rules and values.

Where rules are petty and only succeed in causing alienation between ‘them’ and ‘us,’ values bring everyone together. They give everyone a construct for how to succeed.  They promote the actions that will draw the shortest line from here to there.

People will behave as positively as you let them.  Everyone wants to do good work and achieve success.  If you reward results while ignoring how they were achieved behaviors will deteriorate and align with the behavior behind the falsely rewarded results.

When a company lacks strong values it often devolves into a semi-professional Lord of the Flies, everyone for himself environment.  Standing out typically comes at the expense of others.

photo by steve wampler

photo by steve wampler

If you stand for everything, you stand for nothing.

While it’s never too late to rethink values, you don’t get many shots at this.  If you look around and see chaos and dysfunction it may be time to rethink your values.

Those at the top of an organization, business unit or even small team who believe change has to come from the bottom are copping out.  Values change from the top.  Period.  The top defines who succeeds and who doesn’t.  And therein is an implicit statement of values.

So as a leader ask yourself these questions to build your values foundation:

  1. What actions do you admire in others?  I like this one because it allows us to also strive to be better individuals too.
  2. What actions can you carry out each and every day without fail?  You have to walk the talk constantly.  You have to hold yourself to an impossibly high standard in order to succeed in getting these universally acknowledged and followed.
  3. What does your company require to succeed in the long-term?  Do you want to promote competition or collaboration?  Are you dependent upon new ideas?  Depending on your answers, certain values will be more apt.

Values aren’t decoration for the company walls or cute desk magnets.  Nor are they the catalyst for some feel good, touchy-feely, Kumbaya love-in.  You have to enforce them as viciously as the Chinese keyboard manufacturer seemingly does their rules.

If someone doesn’t hold the values the company holds you need to get on the same page.  Should that fail, you need to part ways.  Period.  Values are the lifeblood of an organization.  An engine doesn’t run when you mix water and oil.

Zappos 10 core values and how ardently they celebrate them are a good start for further exploring.

Posted by brentdaily on February 9, 2009 | Add a comment | Culture, Promotion, Rules, Values