The Top Secret to Success at a Workplace!
Managers doing nothing? Employees working too hard? Warren Buffet???
This post manages to irritate me every time I read it. Took me a while to decide if to post it. Decided it's provoked me enough. So now maybe it'll provoke you?
Would love to hear your thoughts...
Note to Reader: This is written in a somewhat-provocative manner. The style is intend to provoke thought - not to frustrate or anger. If it impacts you in any way other than the intended way, I pre-apologize.
It may have been Warren Buffet(***), the American business magnate, who listed the following two secret rules to workplace success.
Meaning, assuming you're doing your honest best - and doing it well - in delivering what you were hired to do, based on the skills for which you were hired, what is it that differentiates between two equally-performing employees, making one of them of higher-value than the other - making one of them more successful in the hierarchical structure?
Well, could it have been Mr. Buffet said the rule-of-thumbs are(***):
If you are a manager, then you should be working as little as possible... and letting your employees work as much as possible.
If I have a manager, then I should be doing as much as possible to make my manager's life as easy as possible.
Now, this may sound exaggerated - even outrageous, but let's try to understand:
* If you are a manager, your team is hopefully working as hard as it can on achieving the team's goals (deadlines, deliveries, production - whatever). As a manager, you are hopefully working very hard - super hard - on inspiring the team, balancing the tasks, letting the team execute, getting out of the way, delivering what they need when they need it - and clearing the path for the team. That means you should be working as little as possible on the Team's goals. Instead, give them the space they need in order to succeed.
And that's it. Working as little as possible [on the team goals. Stay out of their way. And of course work as hard as possible on your chores].
* And if I have a manager, then - as team-member - my main concern should be about delivering what my manager needs - before they ask a second time, supporting the assigned tasks and making them happen. My manager should not have to ask for things twice. Should not be chasing me down and following up on execution of team goals.
Beyond doing whatever it is I need to be doing, which appears in my job description, I should be working hard to make my manager's life as easy as possible.
(And for those of us that are managers and have managers... tough luck. You have to do both. And do them extremely well.)
Good Luck! Be'Hatzlacha!
(***) It could have. But on the other hand, there's no indication he (or anyone else, for that matter) said what's written here. If someone has to take the blame, I'll take it. Sorry if I click-baited you.