Work smarter. Live happier.
Delegation of authority is meant to be empowering. It is intended to motivate and not create an overwhelming process that leads to confused, overworked staff struggling to navigate through everyday tasks with unclear guidance. This should be our mantra to success.
Neil Usher is not leaving a stone unturned. He investigates the potential of creating an ideal work environment from all possible perspectives. He genuinely believes a fantastic workplace can exist. All necessary tools are provided. You keep what you need, disregard what you already have, and often come back to check what boxes are still checked and which ones need to be re-evaluated. As often mentioned in the book, a fantastic workplace is a never-ending process, so don't get too comfortable.
The real challenge is not to keep turnover rates low whatsoever. The real challenge is to rearrange the players on the field in the most effective way for both the players to feel content and the game not to be disrupted.
A disclaimer that this is definitely not a politically correct article is almost necessary here. Despite starting off with the best of intentions not to offend anyone, it might end up offending half of the workforce, including the one who wrote it. Yes, maybe I see myself in some of the behaviours below, but that is as much as I'm confessing today.
It keeps happening. Employers claim they cannot spot a suitable candidate within a pool of hundreds of applications while candidates complain they are not even given a chance for an interview even though they know to their core they tick all the boxes in the job description. Too many options and skills diversity in a market more competitive than ever as opposed to a constant nagging that “we cannot find the right people”.
Attending an in-depth work-life balance workshop can be eye-opening and give you all the tools you need to do your own research and get a deeper understanding of how to achieve your own personal work-life balance free from both external and internal distractions. One has rarely the chance to attend one such workshop, let alone two! Well, lucky me, I attended two in one week!
Work-life balance. Sounds great, feels comforting and seems achievable, right? You wake up in the morning fresh from an 8-hours sleep, jog with your dog, take a shower singing Sinatra, enjoy a homemade breakfast with your family, put on your flawlessly ironed work clothes and head to the office. And only after you have joyfully greeted your colleagues and prepared a hot cup of coffee do you check your emails and get on with your daily tasks.
Of course, not all workplace trends are subjects of controversy. It is hard to think there are people who would oppose a shift in closing the gender pay gap or promoting a better work-life balance. However, this is definitely not the case for Automation and Artificial Intelligence (AI).
Your Workplace Guru 