Monday Motivation: A Glimpse at the Other Side

photo credit: Giuseppe Bognanni

If you’re a manager, chances are you think your job is harder than that of your reports’. Perhaps it’s uncomfortable to admit, but it’s probably at least an occasional fleeting thought. And if you’re a ground-level player, chances are you think your job is harder than your manager’s job.

And how about those slackers in that other department? They always seem to be goofing off every time you go by for coffee.

You know where I’m going with this, I’m sure. Sometimes it’s easier to be hard on others than it is to empathize. But truly great accomplishments are rare when there isn’t a healthy spirit of collaboration and teamwork.

Yes, I know: teamwork. It’s a concept so overused by motivational posters and earnest HR professionals, I’m cringing even as I type it.

But like most cliches, it has roots in some grounded truth. Great things happen when we start looking at issues the way our colleagues see them, the way our customers and clients see them, the way our bosses see them. It takes looking beyond your day-to-day frustrations, and seeing new possibilities for progress.

Maybe this week is as good a week as any to try looking over the wall at what those around you are experiencing. There’s a chance you’ll be just the right person to solve someone else’s problem for them. And there’s even a chance that’ll solve problems of your own.