Someone told me when I entered the workforce at 15 that I would soon find out that “work” equals drudgery. I remember smiling and nodding, but heading off to my first job just as happy and excited as I could be. As strange and unbelievable as this may sound, I have always loved my jobs. Whether it was waiting tables, which I did for 6 years, or retail (2 years), corporate (4 years) or government (3 months, so far), I’ve always had the mentality that I’m there to do the best job possible and mostly enjoyed the work. What made some of these jobs miserable were the people I worked with or for - the complainers, the gossipers, the no-matter-what-it-will-never-work-ers, the stallers and the bullies. I just have very little patience with people who don’t try their hardest at their job, ESPECIALLY if they’ve been doing that same job for a long time. Or think that the workers “just do ________. It’s not rocket science.” So, when I read The Three Signs of a Miserable Job by Patrick Lencioni, it certainly connected with me.
Think about it – we spend more time at work than any other place. Our workplaces and co-workers are a huge part of our lives. It stands to reason, then, that when “managers cannot see beyond what their employees are doing and help them understand who they are helping and how they are making a difference, then those jobs are bound to be miserable” (235).
Consider how much more fulfilled and satisfied with your job you would be if your boss/manager took the time to get to know you personally, took time to measure your success through steps that are easy to understand and easy to implement. Plus, could give you guidance on exactly how big an impact your job has on customers, your boss, the company and yourself. Yes, Lencioni states, you actually ARE important! Surprise!!
Now, you’re probably thinking you don’t want to read another stale, boring self-help book. Well, that’s good, because Lencioni gives all this information in “The Fable” – a story that follows manager, Brian Bailey through a rough spot in his career to the path of his eventual development of a management strategy of three-parts he calls Anonymity, Irrelevance and Immeasurement.
The underlying truth in this book is this: “When people lose sight of their impact on other people’s lives, or worse yet, when they come to the realization that they have no impact at all, they begin to die emotionally. The fact is, God didn’t create people to serve themselves. Everyone ultimately wants and needs to help others, and when they cannot, misery ensues” (232).
The same goes for people like me, who naturally tend to be positive and idealistic, at least initially, and who tend to chafe when working with co-workers and bosses who are frequently negative and passive-aggressive. Lencioni helped to reinforce the belief that behavior is learned, and that while the atmosphere of a workplace is usually set by managers/bosses, employees are not completely powerless. If employees begin to use some of the techniques Lencioni outlines, the company culture can begin to change for the better. Even better is to give this book to your manager, even if you have to sign it “A Secret Admirer.”
I definitely recommend this book – GOOD!
