In my last post entitled Why You Shouldn’t Settle When it Comes to Work, I mentioned that in her book The Regenerative Business, Carol Sanford recommends that businesses adapt a developmental mindset: Let people use their own unique essences in line with company values and goals.
What I did not mention — and this is EXCITING — is that you also have people like Craig Handley (author of Hired to Quit, Inspired to Stay), who are literally hiring people and saying you’re hired and we are training you to quit. Wait, what? “My dream is to build a world-class call center, it’s not theirs,” he says. And guess what? His turnover decreased 20%. Why? Because his employees feel supported in their dreams, and are happier and inspired to stay.
So, from the employer perspective the scale starts with “You’re a dummy, you can do just what I ask you to do, and I will micromanage the crap out of you” to “I can grow you to be what I want you to be” to “you do you, I’m gonna help you get there and leave me.” Wow! And the tactics range from carrots and sticks to letting people tap into their uniqueness and sense of purpose.
In Daniel Pink’s book Drive, he gets into how our work can fulfill our intrinsic needs by tapping into the drive to do something because it’s absorbing, interesting, and challenging (rather than the carrot and the stick model). Such intrinsic needs are typically met when employees work in environments that encourage autonomy, mastery and purpose.
There are amazing jobs out there. There are workplaces that care about your well-being. There are jobs where recess is mandatory. (And no, it’s not amateur slackluster hour, it’s because the company knows how to get those “Beast Brains” going!)
So what kind of mindset does your company have?
Like the what I have to say? Check out my book, Ever-Stressed!
