Don’t work for a jerk

Have you ever worked for a jerk?

I can honestly say that I have never reported directly to a jerk boss. I have, however, reported to a boss who reported to a jerk. And I have certainly been around enough jerks in a managerial role and had to deal with the fallout of their behavior.

Life is too short to work for a jerk. Refuse to go there.

I have long maintained that any job interview should be a two-way conversation. When interviewing for a job, remember to ask questions and determine whether the role and the environment are good fits for you.

An individual cannot be fully successful in a role where they are unable to get along with their direct boss. Sure, you might be able to get the job done. But, you will never reach your potential with an idiot holding you back.

If you find yourself working for a jerk, quit. Don’t hesitate. Walk away.

Trust me on this: You will never correct a jerk boss’ behavior. You can choose to tolerate it, or you can move on.

It doesn’t necessarily require quitting the company. But, act quickly. Find a way to report to someone else.

A word of caution… Before you jump, take a look in the mirror and make sure the jerk is not staring back at you.

 

Surprise!

How often do you find yourself being surprised at work? And how often are those surprises happy surprises?

Yeah, that’s what I thought.

Unless they are guaranteed to be happy surprises, surprises are best avoided in the work place. And let’s face it, most surprises in the work place are not happy ones.

The same thing goes for the way we treat our customers. Here’s one example.

About a month ago, I joined a gym. This gym uses boxing as the basis for their group workouts. We don’t actually punch each other, we just hit the heavy bags. But, we still wrap our hands and don boxing gloves. When I joined, they told me gloves were provided. Sure enough, there was a wall rack full of loaner gloves available. Until last week.

Me: “Excuse me. Where are the gloves?”

Staff person: “Oh, we aren’t providing those any more.”

Surprise!

I have no issue with the gym discontinuing loaner gloves. I’m not happy about it, but I understand their decision, which they explained was primarily for sanitary reasons.  However, I have a huge issue with simply walking in one day and finding all of the gloves gone. Especially since it’s two weeks before Christmas. Hello, Santa?

How much more effort would have been required to provide 2-3 weeks advance notice while continuing business as usual? A simple sign near the loaner gloves would have been plenty.  More importantly, how much happier would the members have been with some level of up front notification?

Note that I am not suggesting that we should seek approval from those who will be impacted by pending changes. Only that we should inform those who will be impacted.

Consider this as you make changes in your business, both to your customers, and your fellow workers. A simple heads-up notification with a brief explanation of the logic behind a pending change will do wonders.

Let’s keep work fun.

Invite inspection

My first job was in a small, family-owned bicycle shop.  I learned many lessons in that job that have stayed with me through the years. One of those lessons was that everyone makes mistakes. The trick is to minimize their impact by catching them before they cause a problem.

At the bike shop, we did this by having a second person inspect every bike before it left the rack. Even the owner and his first mate (I can think of no better way to describe his role) would call each other over to inspect their work.

There was no shame in having the second person adjust a screw here, or tighten a nut there. It was simply part of the job.

Later, as a software engineer, I learned the value of code reviews. The most intense code reviews involved a group of people inspecting your software, line by line, and providing helpful suggestions on ways to improve it during a code review meeting. It wasn’t just about finding mistakes (bugs), but about helping you improve as a developer. We all came out of these sessions better at our jobs.

Again, there was no shame associated with the number of bugs or suggested improvements identified. It was accepted as part of the company culture.

Yes, these inspections took time. Yes, they involved someone looking over your shoulder to inspect your work. And yes, they were worth it. Every time.

How is your work culture? Are you working as a team to produce a better product? Are you inviting inspection of your work? Or are you rushing through your day, hoping you don’t make mistakes, and hoping even more that nobody will discover them?

Invite inspection and open yourself to the feedback.

There’s No Substitute for Practice

A writer friend of mine says, “Thinking about writing is not writing. Only writing is writing.”  The same goes for practice. No matter how much you think about practicing, talk about practicing, plan for practicing, only practicing is practicing. And there is no substitute for practice to make us better at whatever it is that we do.

I’ve always found it odd that doctors call what they do “practicing” medicine. The last thing I want to be while lying on an operating table is an experiment. Experiments can go wrong. But, I get it.

When I was a software engineer, reading about writing software was useful. But, not as useful as actually sitting down at the keyboard and writing code. With each line typed, my skills and abilities improved.

As a ventriloquist, I spend many, many hours practicing. Some in front of a mirror, some while driving in my car, some while walking down the street.  Sometimes it’s fun, sometimes it’s a real drag.

I can always tell when I haven’t been practicing enough. And I suspect you can, too. You walk into that meeting and the prep work you should have done somehow didn’t make your personal priority list. You feel unprepared. Anxious. You spent so much time adding flourishes and adjusting color schemes in your PowerPoint slides that you somehow never found the time to stand up and practice talking through the presentation. So as you stand to give your presentation the great flop sweat hits you hard.

I don’t know about you, but I don’t like feeling anxious or unprepared. That is why I practice. Because practice causes exactly the opposite feeling. One of confidence, self-assurance, and fun.

You may not be trying to get to Carnegie Hall, but the answer to the question of “How do you get to …” is still the same.  Practice.

 

Hooray! I Get to go to Work Today!

How many times to do you wake up in the morning and say, “Hooray! I get to go to work today!”  How many more times do we find ourselves saying, “I have to go to work today.”

This week, as we lead up to our annual celebration of Thanksgiving here in the US, I suggest you change that one word, from “have” to “get.”  Try it. Do it consciously every day for 2 weeks. I guarantee you will be amazed at the results.

Don’t just say it to yourself. Tell someone else first thing in the morning.  “I get to go to work today!” Say it with enthusiasm. If you live by yourself, make a habit of calling someone on your way to work. Text them (not while driving, of course!). Post it on social media. Really get into it.

When we can truly change our attitude from thinking we have to do something, to rejoicing in fact that we get to do it, our whole outlook and angle of approach changes – for the better.

Today, I get to go to work.  Hooray!

 

 

Thank you sir. May I have another?

If you want to know how far you can go, allow someone else to kick you in the butt.

Have you ever had a coach? I’m not talking about a cheerleader, I mean a coach.

A coach will let you know when you are doing things right, so that you will keep doing it. But, even more important, a good coach will tell you when you are doing it wrong. And they will push you to go beyond what you think you are capable of accomplishing.

At 52 years old, I am only now realizing the power and value of a coach. My whole life I have learned to do things on my own. I read books. Lots of books. And I’ve watched educational videos, and listened to audio programs. But, I’ve never really allowed an individual into my life in a way that pushed my boundaries beyond the comfort zone.

Until recently.

The details are not important. What is important is that I feel the pain – the growth – the stretch – that is coming from having a coach. It hurts in that good kind of post-exercise kind of way. And I’ll be going back for more.

Who is your coach?

 

Not everyone wants to be a star

Employee recognition can be so difficult. Even the best-intentioned attempts can go awry.

At one company where I worked early in my career, we developed a product called the “STAR”. A team of us worked hard to hit some aggressive timelines. We produced a very good product. It was also a lot of fun.

Shortly after the product was launched, the company held a small celebration to recognize our contributions. As a reward, each of the key people on the development team was presented with their own STAR.  Apparently there is an International Star Registry where you can have your name attached to some obscure otherwise unnamed star.

For the record, my star is Hercules RA 18h 0m 40sd 38(degree) 10.

Oh, what the heck, here’s a photo of my certificate:

My star certificate
My star certificate

I thought this was pretty cool when we received these. So cool that I had mine framed and it has hung in my office at work in every job I’ve had since then.

One of my coworkers was less thrilled.  His exact comment was, “I wish they’d just given me the $50.”

The point? Any employee recognition needs to take into account the personalities of those being recognized. For some, being called up onto a big stage under bright lights in front of their peers is absolutely the worst thing you can do. They would rather be strung up and have their toenails pulled out one by one. For others? A moment in the spotlight is a fantastic reward.

One last thought… Just because it’s hard to get it right, doesn’t mean you shouldn’t try.  The thought behind the effort really does count. In my experience, keeping it simple is usually the best choice.

 

Laugh every day

Every once in a while, you are blessed with a great boss.  One of my best put that line on my performance plan.

“Laugh every day.”

The beauty of that line is multi-layered.

First, obviously, it’s simply a great idea for all of us to consider every day of our lives.

Second, it tells you a lot about this particular boss. He valued humor, keeping things light, and having fun – every day.

Third, by putting this on my performance plan, it suggested that I should have the same expectation of those who reported to me in the corporate hierarchy. The message was clear: At least in this department, work should be fun.

Don’t get me wrong. He was a tough boss. Demanding. But, he was genuine. Truly interested in you as an individual every bit as much as he was interested in “hitting the numbers” for the business.

Put that line on your performance plan. Make it a specific goal for you to achieve in your work – and in your life – every day.

 

Mediocrity begins with Me

We’ve all heard it, “There is no ‘I’ in team.”

But, guess what?  “Mediocrity” begins with “me.”

We may not accept mediocrity from ourselves. We may hold ourselves to high standards. We may work hard to be the best we can be at whatever it is we are doing.

But, if we accept mediocrity from those around us, especially those we lead, we are allowing mediocrity to spread. Not just allowing it, but fostering it.  Feeding it.  Nurturing it.

If we accept “good enough” from those around us, our combined effort has no chance of becoming any more than mediocre.

I don’t know about you, but I refuse to be mediocre. Mediocre is not fun. And if we agree that we won’t accept mediocrity from ourselves, we must accept our role in boosting the performance of those around us.

Stop accepting mediocrity. Right now. Halt its spread.  Refuse to accept it.  From yourself, or from others.

 

Some people won’t get it

Do you often find yourself saying, “They just don’t get it”?  Yeah. Me, too.

I am an avid reader of my daily horoscope.  Today’s was tied directly to the “Work Should Be Fun!” mantra.

Leo: You have an instinct to be playful even in work-oriented situations. Not everyone will understand how this makes things better. That is why your process is best kept private. Let them see the results and wonder how you got them.

(Printed in the Columbus Dispatch, October 22, 2013)

Perfect. Except for that part about keeping it private. After all, that’s why I started this blog.

The bottom line is, enjoying our work leads to higher levels of productivity. One way of bringing more enjoyment to our work is to maintain a playful attitude. (There’s that attitude thing again…)

When you see me with that silly smirk on my face in the middle of a long, boring meeting, don’t worry.  It’s just me thinking playful thoughts. And keeping them to myself.