Ask Not What Your Company Can Do For You — Ask What You Can Do For Your Company

Hector Quintanilla
Sep 8, 2018 · 4 min read

Today’s workplace is all about results.

Photo by Venveo on Unsplash

“I can’t stand my boss anymore! This is too much work for me! I’ve had enough, I just walked out of my job!” As soon as I answered the phone, the complaining started.

“Relax Tom! Tell me, what’s going on?”

“These people are insane, they expect me to work all day long!” Tom argued, “You will never understand Hector!”

“I do understand,” I answered, “you’re always complaining about your job. Last year you went through three jobs, and I never saw you happy. Maybe you are the problem, Tom!”

“Are you crazy? You can say that because you have the perfect job. Obviously, you will never understand me. If you could just experience my miserable situation, you would most definitely agree with me!”

“Tom, let me be very honest, if you had my job, you would also quit!”

“What? You have my dream job Hector!” he replied.

“Tom! Tom! Stop right there,” I interrupted.

“When you accepted this last job, you told me you had just found your dream job! You, my friend; you are the problem!” I said trying to be very being honest.

“Tom, listen to me.” I paused for a moment thinking the tough love I was about to expel.

“My friend, it’s time for you to wake up! You will continue to be financially drained until you change the negative attitude you have towards work!”

“Help me get a job, Hector! Hire me! You know I need it badly.”

“No Tom, you should go back to your boss and apologize for your emotional instability. I will help you change your work mindset.”

I grabbed a seat and emptied my heart out trying to help my friend, “You have always viewed your job with a perspective of entitlement. That will not lead you to success in any job you have!”

“I don’t understand,” Tom said.

“My friend, you’re focused on yourself. Think about the attitude with which you walked into your office this morning. Think about the drama you just created in your department and with your boss.”

“Yes, it was a Jerry Macguire “fish” scene,” he admitted.

“I can recognize the same pattern of problems you have expressed in the past jobs you’ve resigned. You’re selfish, and as a result, you’re not delivering value to your job!”

“Wrong!” Tom roared, “I’m there every day. I’m never late. I know how to do everything they ask me to do; don’t you tell me I don’t deliver value! The truth is that nor the company nor my boss values me!”

I could hear his breathing full of anger.

“Tom, I appreciate you as a friend, and I would love to help you, but you first need to listen to me. You’ve always had the wrong approach towards work.”

“Will you give me a job or not?” He interrupted. “That’s all I want!”

“I need you to listen to me, Tom!” I said patiently.

“Shut up and stop preaching!”

He abruptly ended the phone call.

I did not hire him.


This is perhaps one of the most frustrating struggles any business owner can experience.

My friend Tom had an obvious point of view, but I see things from a different perspective.

Businesses invest a significant amount of time and energy sketching an ideal compensation plan to keep employees motivated and happy. Sadly, over time, employees come to anticipate them as their due.

Privileges eventually become rights and perks lose their original intention to enhance productivity and results.

Today, I invest time in what I call the “Delivered-Value” mindset. With this I intend to tear down the “employee entitlement” phenomenon that we have inherited from Industrial Age business models.

Entitlement manifests in the workplace in various ways and can quickly scatter, eventually hacking our corporate culture.

This is the question we should all be asking ourselves:

What’s your delivered value?

In his inaugural speech, President Kennedy told Americans to “ask not what your country can do for you — ask what you can do for your country.”

As our world evolves into the Digital Age, all organizations are facing very harsh competitive conditions. Automation will grow exponentially demanding more from all of us if we want to stay competitive.

We need a new mindset, focused on the delivered value.

President Kenedy delivered this famous speech to his country. I believe company leaders of the Digital Era need to spread a similar message:

“Ask not what your company can do for you — ask what you can do for your company.’’

It’s all about results.

Long gone are the days of high margins that helped organizations tolerate inefficiencies. Only the teams that embrace the responsibility of delivering high value with an obsessive focus on customers will win.


My friend Tom couldn’t understand this. He still believes that privileges are synonym of rights. I can’t afford to get this disrupted mindset to hack my team.

I’ll find other ways to help him.

Hector Quintanilla

Written by

Rethinking Education for the Digital Age. Popular Quora Writer #Entrepreneurship #Automation #Disruption #FutureEducation #Jesusfollower DigitalAgeEducation.com

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