In the Workplace Don’t Coast, Instead Stir the Pot

“Fly Below the Radar” attitude. To paraphrase what Seth Godin wrote way back in 2003, in the past our great-grandfathers knew what it meant to work hard – it was easy to define: actual physical labor. Today, hard work is stirring the pot to move toward positive change. Hard work is not pulling all-nighters – it’s getting your work done efficiently, it’s improving processes and sometimes having disagreements. Seth Godin, I can’t help quoting you, cause everything that you said rings true…

Here’s what Seth Godin calls hard work today:

“Hard work is where our job security, our financial profit, and our future joy lie.

“It’s hard work to invent a new system, service, or process that’s remarkable. It’s hard work to tell your boss that he’s being intellectually and emotionally lazy. It’s easier to stand by and watch the company fade into oblivion. It’s hard work to tell senior management to abandon something that it has been doing for a long time in favor of a new and apparently risky alternative. It’s hard work to make good decisions with less than all of the data.

“Hard work is about risk. It begins when you deal with the things that you’d rather not deal with: fear of failure, fear of standing out, fear of rejection. Hard work is about training yourself to leap over this barrier, tunnel under that barrier, and drive through the other barrier. And, after you’ve done that, to do it again the next day.”

Don’t ignore inefficiency at your workplace, regardless of your position. This concept is vital in today’s economy. Don’t be afraid to sometimes go against the current to do what is right and follow best practices in your field. This is particularly hard when your supervisors are doing things the wrong way. Don’t sit back and let supervisors or co-workers do things incorrectly.

Mistakes add up, and have a greater impact than ever on your company’s health. Yes, it’s easier to keep your head down, and then say ‘I told you so’ when the company fails. But then you’d be out of a job in a difficult job market. If your company increases revenue, you will have greater job security, more raises and bonuses.

Warning: proactive behavior like this may induce “fly below the radar” types to talk about you behind your back. Pleasantly, they’ll also be the first to get cut loose when it is time for layoffs.