I don’t feel like going to work today. In fact, there are lots of times, I’d just as soon not go to work ever again. Life outside of work (with the proper resources) seems like it could be so much more fulfilling. I’d love to travel more. I’d love to pursue some other things (reading, writing, photography, painting, chilling, meeting people, etc. etc. etc.) I’ve felt this way for years.
Last night as I left, I saw my boss check the clock to see what time I was leaving. She does this every night. For me it sends a signal of distrust. It sets up a work environment in which time in is valued more than productivity and outcomes. I stay till five because it’s expected, not because I need to. I’m sure I could stay much later – there is always another email that could be sent (that’s the point behind the leave work on time philosophy – you could stay forever). I find clock watching like that demoralizing. This is the type of environment / culture we seem to have. Some co-workers complain about other co-workers not putting in the same amount of effort – they feel because they’re not staying late, they’re not pulling their weight. Obviously, the ones who are staying late every night are the ones complaining… I’ve never understood this mentality. To me, it’s the analogy I’ve heard about capitalism. There are three people at a dinner table. The waiter brings out a dozen cookies. One of the people takes 11 of them and then leans over to the person to his right and says, you better watch out, he’s eyeing up your cookie. Instead of being upset that people leave on time, I think my co-workers should be demanding that they leave on time as well.
When I worked at United Way, I was adamant that my direct reports leave work at work and always try to leave on time. Not only did I believe it was better for their health and a whole bunch of other things, but from an organizational standpoint, I believed that we needed to be better at scoping projects out and getting to the real cost of things. If a job takes 60 hours to complete in a week, you need 1.5 employees to do it. If you’re always relying on 1 person to do the work of 1.5 people, you’re headed for burnout and the project isn’t sustainable.
I’m not one who spends a lot of time reading about management. To me it seems mostly intuitive. Be decent, be trusting, be patient, support your people in words and deeds. It seems like if you do those types of things, you can build an enthusiastic and dedicated team. I believe the culture starts at the top. I recently asked why we don’t have weekly team meetings and was told that they devolve in to bitch sessions. To me, that’s unacceptable. I understand that it might be easier to abandon them if they’re not productive, but the other option would be to push through, model the proper behaviors, and train everyone to have productive team meetings (that don’t devolve). This got me to thinking about management styles… I came across an interesting read from SHRM (society of human resource managers) 5 Types of Bad Bosses. I think anyone who is in a management position would do well to read things like this and reflect on whether or not they fit any (or all) of these categories.
I’m too new in my position to rock the boat. But, as an outsider with considerable management experience, I can see and feel that something isn’t right. The question for me is whether or not I’ll have the courage (or desire) to try to change it? Do I talk to the board? To my boss? Or do I just chalk it up to maybe not being a good cultural fit? I’m not one who usually sits by and watches. This post, may just be a first step towards doing something… I’m not comfortable writing any of this…. but it’s through taking small risks that we get comfortable with taking bigger ones…. When I see a problem, my natural inclination is to try to help. I believe behavioral change is a long and slow process, and I like to think that I’m an influencer – one who can patiently model effective behaviors so that other’s pick up on it. It’s at the core of being a teacher, convener, and community builder – all things I have experience in doing. But some days, like today, I just want to be retired…. When you’re retired, you never have to think about these types of things. You get up and you say, what do I want to do today…. That seems nice.