Magicians and disguise experts tell us that people see what they expect to see. Management Consultant Tom Peters states it this way "perception is all there is."
I was talking with a friend the other day who is being treated in a less than equitable way by her employer. She's bright, articulate, and exceedingly good at what she does. Both supervisors and co-workers frequently call upon her expertise and knowledge. She believes that over the years she has earned their respect.
She recently requested a change in job classification and commensurate increase in salary reflective of her demonstrated skills and the expectations of her current role.
Unfortunately for my friend, her supervisors look at her and "see" the person they initially hired. Her professional growth, acquired expertise, corporate knowledge, and demonstrated abilities are invisible, hidden by historical reference. We see what we expect to see.
How am I supposed to feel loyal and stay motivated? She asks in frustration.
My response? I don't ascribe to the ethic of corporate loyalty. Long gone are the days when one could expect to be valued and treated fairly because of long years of service or even for excellent work.
I do however ascribe to the ethic of personal integrity. I choose to be a hard-working, honest, passionately motivated employee, because that's my choice. If it comes to the point where I can no longer be that kind of employee, I apply my considerable skills, talents and efforts to finding a new role and new people with whom to work.
Managing and motivating people well is, to my way of thinking, the most difficult aspect of leadership. I've read a number of books on the subject, including "Winning" by Jack Welch. As one would expect with any book on management theory, I found a few gems of insight along the way, and some ideas that I just didn't think would ever work for me.
Mr. Welch is revered by many as "the authority" on corporate management. Therefore, I read with interest this controversial feature article in CNNMoney.com - Tearing up the Jack Welch playbook.
The article opens with this provocative statement: The Six Sigma master was once the undisputed authority in management. But Fortune is finding that today's smart CEOs are following a different set of rules.
Here is the old vs new list. Some of the new ideas may work for you, some may not, but at least they give us food for thought.
| New Rules | vs. | Old Rules | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Agile is best; being big can bite you. | Big dogs own the street. | |
| 2 | Find a niche, create something new. | Be No. 1 or No. 2 in your market. | |
| 3 | The customer is king. | Shareholders rule. | |
| 4 | Look out, not in. | Be lean and mean. | |
| 5 | Hire passionate people. | Rank your players; go with the A's. | |
| 6 | Hire a courageous CEO. | Hire a charismatic CEO. | |
| 7 | Admire my soul. | Admire my might. |
See also: How to Hire Passionate Employees
Comments