Adding Water: Obviously

Adding Water: Obviously.   by Barry Maher    Before one of my keynotes, an attendee who introduced himself as Mr. Lansdorf asked me, "What can I do about working for a corporation full of stiffs?" In spite of the fact that the company paid quite well, Mr. Lansdorfs people never performed the way he hoped they would when he hired them. His co-workers werent much better. As for his boss, "He couldnt care less about my problems. Hed like to be able to forget about my whole department." "So what exactly do you want?" I asked. "What Id like is for people to do the job theyre supposed to do, the way theyre supposed to do it." "Which means?" I asked. "To do something beyond the minimum: to go the extra mile for the company. Everybody expects something for nothing." "Dont you?" "Hey, I earn my money," Mr. Lansdorf insisted. "I go way beyond the minimum." "And it gets you?" "Nothing, thats the point. It gets me nothing." "So how long are you going to keep doing that?" "Not much longer, believe me." "But you want others to go beyond the minimum: without putting something it in for them? Arent you the one whos expecting for something for nothing?" "I want people to do what they should do." "So what were talking about is morality and ethics? What people should do?" "Exactly." he said. "So as a manager, your ability to manage is based upon people doing what they should do? Otherwise you cant get the results you want?" "No of course not. Nobody does what they should. At least nobody in my company." "So wouldnt you be better off trying to find a way to get the results you need with the people youve got rather than the perfect people who do what they should and apparently dont exist. Or at least dont exist in your company?" "Obviously." Obviously. Bingo! I thought. I felt like Socrates: elucidating my point with just the right questions. Of course later someone reminded me of the famous report given by a third-grader: "Socrates was a Greek philosopher who went around giving people advice. They poisoned him." So much for the Socratic method. Obviously, Lansdorf said. If it was so obvious why had he been asking his people to go the extra mile when there was really no advantage in it for them? Even if they went along in order to stay on his good side, how enthusiastic would they be?   You Cant Sell an Empty Glass Why do we all so frequently act like Mr. Lansdorf? Trish asks her boss to go out of his way for her and help get her promoted. Theres nothing in it for him. If anything, losing Trish will make his job more difficult. Hes a nice guy. He may help her. But wouldnt he go along far more willingly if he was doing it to gain another ally in management; or to earn points with the company for having developed another manager; or to free up Trishs spot so he can reward and keep from losing that great new talent hes been grooming on the rung below hers. Its obvious: you cant sell anybody anything if you dont offer them some benefit. You cant motivate anyone by offering them an empty glass. Its obvious: and we all forget it. Constantly. We hope ethics or morality or religion or character will make up for the lack of incentive. Does your idea of character tell you that when theres little or nothing in it for you that you should devote yourself unstintingly to providing for someone elses welfare? If so please call, Ive got a job for you. Tip: If I believe that playing by your rules, systems, procedures, traditions or morality guarantees that Im going to lose, do not expect me to play by them. Bosses who tell you they cant hire good workers are usually telling you theyre poor bosses. Theyre telling you they arent providing sufficient incentive for people to meet their standards. Or if they have provided the incentive, they haven’t provided sufficient nuts and bolts, real-world training and direction, leaving their people wanting to climb the mountain but without a clear enough trail to follow. To mix metaphors a bit, they aren’t adding enough water to the glass. Based on Barry Maher’s book, Filling the Glass: The Skeptics Guide to Positive Thinking in Business," which has just been cited by Todays Librarian magazine as "[One of] The Seven Essential Popular Business Books." Copyright © 2001 Barry Maher. All rights reserved.

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