By operating in the right work relationship
April 6, 2004
Copyright © 2004 by Bill Dueease
Why are so many people unhappy in their work situation?
Why do people, who are successful at one career, have such difficult
times coping with their new career? These problems frequently occur,
because conflicts exist in their work relationships.
Relationships between you and your work can also be considered the "games
of work." Games have basic rules to follow, which require specific
skills to succeed at playing. People win at the games they play when
they achieve the game objectives and by operating within the rules of
the game better than others. The "games of work" also have
objectives and basic rules that must be followed to succeed.
There are many different sports games and the objectives and rules are
different for each game, sometimes dramatically so. There are three
fundamental "games of work" that define the different
relationships people have with their work.
Yet, very few people who participate in the "games of work"
understand which game they are playing, the objectives and/or rules
of the game. Consequently, if they blindly operate under different rules,
methods, and purposes than the conditions their work relationship (game)
requires, they are bound to create conflicts. These conflicts result
in serious stress and very poor success rates. For example, if a fully
uniformed football player clamors onto a tennis court and operates under
football rules with football skills by trying to tackle his opponents,
he will create considerable conflicts and will undoubtedly fail at the
game of tennis.
The first step to succeeding at the "games of work"
is to understand the objectives and rules of each game. The second step
is to determine which game of work you are currently playing. The next
step is to either adjust your work purposes and behaviors to suit the
game you are playing or switch to the game at which you are best suited.
The following rules must be followed completely to succeed at
each of the three "Games of Work." They are strikingly
different.
1. This is the
job position. Virtually all government and most corporate work relationships
(jobs) fall under this game of work. The rules of the bureaucracy game
that participants must follow to succeed and be promoted to higher and
higher levels within the organization, even to the top, are as follows:
A. Do what it takes to protect or expand their power, control, and positions.
B. Divert and avoid responsibility, and especially blame whenever possible.
C. Attend to the wishes and desires of those who make decisions about
promotions, salaries, and work positions first and foremost, even if
it means placing the success of the organization a distant second.
D. Find, select, and require where possible, subordinates who will be
very loyal to THEM first, and who will perform requested duties to personally
benefit him or her, the bureaucrat, even if doing so will be detrimental
to the organization.
E. Take credit and recognition for rewardable achievements or positive
results performed by others, whenever possible, whether deserved or
not, to advance their career.
F. Recognize how little, if any, job security they really have. Bureaucrats
can be terminated, laid off, or moved at the whims of superiors almost
at will.
G. Recognize that they are compensated for basically showing up.
2. :
Some examples of this game of work are: Commissioned salesmen, multilevel
marketing members, franchisees, most professional sports players, most
professionals like medical doctors, attorneys dentists and life coaches,
actors, musicians, therapists and real estate agents operate within
the game of Partial Entrepreneurship. The rules of the game that partial
entrepreneurs must follow to succeed are as follows:
A. Take responsibility for work performed and the results achieved in
their specialized fields of work, but not for the total business, even
though they frequently work within the umbrella of a larger organization.
B. Focus their energies on performing in their chosen fields and much
less on the wishes of any possible superiors, or to extracting favors
from subordinates.
C. They are compensated almost exclusively upon the quality and quantity
of the results they produce within their chosen areas of responsibility.
D. Find and select subordinates who will be very loyal to them to assist
them to produce more quality income producing results in the partial
entrepreneur's chosen specialty fields.
E. Take as much credit as possible for the work and results achieved
by themselves and/or their subordinates.
F. They have more control over what their jobs will be and they have
much more job security.
3. Anyone
who has controlling interest (and many times non controlling interest)
in a business plays by this "game of work." The rules of the
game that business owners must follow for their businesses and for them
to succeed are as follows:
A. Take full responsibility for their work performance and the success
of their business.
B. Learn to pass on as much credit as possible.
C. Focus their energies first and almost exclusively on the success
of the business.
D. They have full control over what their work activities will be and
virtually total control over their own work security (whether they know
it or not).
E. They have no one in the organization to take orders from or to indulge.
F. Find and select subordinates who will assist the business to generate
more quality profits. Subordinates are only asked to generate more profits
for the basiness and will not be expected (or allowed) to perform personal
favors for the owner or anyone that might hinder the success of the
business.
F. They are in essence, compensated only from the profits of the business.
Once the above rules are understood, it becomes easy to recognize how
important it is to play by the rules of the "game of work"
you are participating in to succeed. For example, you will clearly struggle
if you play by the rules of a bureaucracy, when you are operating as
a business owner. The conditions and rules of each of the three "games
of work" do not change. Either you change to match the “game,”
you are playing or you find and play in the "game of work"
that best suits you.
Michael Jordan, one of the best basketball players of all time, could
not translate his huge basketball knowledge and skills into a successful
baseball career. He proved that the knowledge and skills needed to succeed
at the game of baseball are much different from those needed to succeed
at the game of basketball. Yet, he thought he could easily master baseball,
because he had been so good at basketball. And when he returned to basketball,
he had to work extra hard to re-sharpen his basketball skills to his
previous levels. Likewise, the knowledge and skills needed to be a successful
Bureaucrat, Partial Entrepreneur, or Business Owner, are much different
from each other.
Do you know the work game are you participating in and are you playing
by the appropriate rules? You can either change how you work to suit
the rules of the game of work you are playing or you can chose to work
in the game of work that best suits you.
We welcome your opinions and comments.
Bill Dueease
Editor
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