As I was working away the other day someone asked me, "how many hours a week do you work"? I responded with, gee I don't have a clue. They asked again incredulous, "you don't even know?" I replied, what difference does it make? And they said, "well, I work forty hours a week and that's all this company is getting out of me."
And I suddenly remembered something I had read. If you are working your passion then it's not a job. Some say I work tirelessly. Other say, maniacally. I say, I work.
But I enjoy what I do and I enjoy doing it. For me to work 50 or 60 hours a week is no big deal. But as a great manager I understand that most of my people never want to work over 40. The difference is,
I work my passion while they work their job.
Should I be upset with them? Of course not. As a great manager part of my job is to know my people. Understand what motivates them. Understand their modus operandi and how they work, play and succeed. Know their strengths AND their weaknesses. Be able to utilize their strengths and reduce the effects their weaknesses have upon how they do their job, their coworkers and the company.
If I know what rewards them, a personal compliment? A mention in front of a meeting? A handwritten note? A plaque? Monetary? Non-monetary? then I understand my people and how I can help them achieve superior results.
Because some work their job and some work their passion. Some live for what their job brings to their lives and some work for what the financial reward from their job brings to their lives.
How are you learning about your people? What are you doing to understand them in order for you to achieve great results in your job and for your organization?
I am www.stevesapato.com and I live to help you become a better manager because GREAT MANAGERS ARE MADE NOT BORN.
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