Wednesday, April 10, 2013

Slow and Steady Loses Every Time

The world of work is moving at the speed of light. Or at least it feels that way for me. The work life balance discussion doesn't seem to stop, but quite frankly I don't think many of the uber rich outside of Silicon Valley are listening.

That means the pressure is on more than ever for those who are gainfully employed to continue to produce in an environment where so many talented people are waiting to jump at the chance to join your team ( read here -> in your job.)


 
Perhaps the corporate world is sending a nonstop message that tells us to be ultra-competitive in order to drive profit margins, achieve world-class status or consistently be first to market with the latest product or idea.

Maybe I'm contributing to this message?

Speed of Work
I've recently started referring to the pace of the workload and projects my team is expected to survive...er...perform at as the speed of our work. I'm still unsure if I'm being arrogant in thinking that we are expected to perform at a higher level than most; or, if we are in fact operating most days at a different level. Quite honestly I'm inclined to believe it's the latter of the two.

The obvious question which follows is whether or not work is supposed to look and feel this way? Is post-recession society (barely) simply moving so fast that leaders like me have come to believe that the speed of work for the foreseeable future must be sustained at a blistering pace?

Is the world of work just a corporate game of survival of the fittest...or fastest? I'm not so sure maintaining a nonstop pace in  any activity is sustainable, let alone in the workplace.

No Option
Now is the perfect time to discuss how HR can change the culture of the organization to help bring balance to a chaotic world. But I'm not going down that path. Work is hard, and there seems to be a heck of a lot of it to do these days. 

"I think HR has an opportunity to help source high performing employees, support them as they get up to speed, and make sure those that are dragging down your organization have an opportunity to anchor another company's slow decline."

There is no option but to stop making excuses, and pick up your pace. 

How About You
Too much time is wasted complaining about workloads, balance, piles of paperwork, meetings, email, and on and on. Yes, we have a long list of tasks to complete and email to read. Download an app or two to make yourself more efficient, get yourself organized, and pick up the pace. 

I'd love to hear from you.

No Excuses.






1 comment:

  1. Great stuff! Yes....its either you perform or someone else will.....jose

    ReplyDelete