What causes people not to care?
I had a very good chat with a fellow business colleague today about the lack of loyalty from employees in today’s world. This is not a Calgary challenge, this is a global issue, well at least in the western world as we know it today. The conversation started from a comment we overheard at Starbucks about “what causes people not to care?”. Our hour long conversation erupted from that one comment. Almost heated at times but a great chat.
We all experience it, I know I go through my own challenges around drive and determination to get things done, however, I know in my mind that I don’t stop caring about life, the objective, people, business, family or anything else. I always care deep down inside. What it is for me is about priorities. Unfortunately the busyness of life today sometimes may give the perception that I don’t care about a certain topic or thing happening around us but that is so far from the truth.
Maybe that is the same for others that we are judging?
My friend shared with me an experience recently when one of his employees went on vacation and left a mess in the office for others to pick up and complete and he was totally concerned about this. I need to reassure my friend that this sort of stuff happens all the time and he is not the first to experience this nor will he be the last. Does this employee of his care? I asked him that maybe they don’t understand the expectations that you are looking to achieve? Maybe they are having challenges outside the office that is rolling into their work life? There are so many things that cause a person to have the perception that they don’t care.
I wrote an article a few years ago about the “I’m outta here factor” and how to deal with this in your business. This is a huge challenge and obstacle for many business owners when their employees check out. What do you do then? What affect is that having on your clients? These critically important relationships that make the magic of business happen. You can read this article here - http://ezinearticles.com/?When-Employees-Check-Out:-Tips-To-Deal-With-The-I-Am-Outta-Here-Factor&id=464143
I look forward to talking again with my friend about this topic when we link up again.
August 2nd, 2008 at 4:11 pm
What if THIS were true: Employees care in direct proportion to how much they are cared FOR.
My experience is that employees want to work somewhere that treats them as valuable people, who need attention, leadership, investment and a little “love” too. When they get that, they can be amazingly dedicated and a great asset to the business. When they don’t, they are less likely to be positive contributors.
I DON’T think this means that we lower expectations of them or tolerate poor performance. If we have the wrong people on the bus, one way to show loyalty to my staff is by cleaning up that mess, of course.
What if we started asking this question: How loyal are we to our employees? Beyond meeting payroll, what do we do to demonstrate our commitment to them? Sometimes I feel I do really well here, and other times it’s clear that I fall short. I can’t change others, but I can change myself. Your blog today is a great reminder that I should keep paying attention to my staff.
As always, Stuart…thanks for being thought-provoking!
Erik