Is this it? Getting more from the day job!

The average worker brings only 15% of their intelligence to work each day. Shocking statistic or great news?

The reason that this excites me is that this suggests that there could be a whopping 85% of untapped potential out there! So, if you\’re thinking that you’re undervalued in your current role, you could be right. But, hang on, whose job is it to tap your potential? Your manager’s or…. yours?

Do you go to work thinking: “What will I have to do today?” Or do you take a more pro-active approach, thinking instead: “What can I do today that will stretch me and help my employer, my company, my team, my customer?”

Maybe you are the manager? What do you really think of your team? Are you frustrated because they only seem to want to do the bare minimum or are you trying to keep up with their endless creativity?

A survey many years ago, asked workers whether they were capable of doing more than their current role required. The majority answered “YES!” When asked why they weren’t giving their all, they answered that management didn’t want them to progress, and didn’t recognise this potential. Their managers gave the exact same responses when questioned about their potential and their superiors, and so it went on all the way up to the top.

However, looking down to the levels below, all the different tiers of management generally just thought that their subordinates were lazy, clock-watchers who were just scraping by and who had little or no ambition.

Clearly, times have changed and we are all so much more enlightened these days. Our communication skills are better and we all work well together, supporting one another, recognising strengths and recommending each other for promotions and pay-rises. No? – No. It\’s not quite like that either, is it?

So, who does get on? How does that happen? How do some people whizz up the career-ladder as if they were turbo-charged while others sit on the bottom rungs for years, waiting to be called up. We may think: “If I work really hard, my boss will recognise my dedication.” Or, we may have been conditioned to think that we would have to be pushy and arrogant to get ahead.

The reality is simple; we need to know what we want to achieve and communicate our goals to the right people. Then we must be seen to be working towards them. To be serious about them and to be capable of achieving them. We probably do need to keep reminding ourselves and others that we are working towards these goals from time to time. We may get side-tracked by that thing called “life” and so may our managers.

So my suggestion is to be clear about what you want and share it with those who can help you achieve it. No-one can do it for you. Your success is nobody else’s responsibility; it’s yours. 

One way to get more from the day job is to give more to it. The key is making sure that your day job is the right job for you. You might call it your dream job!

If you’d like to discuss your dream job with me, I\’d be delighted to hear about it. Just drop me a line or give me a call. Or, share this post with your manager!

There is a half-day workshop for 6 or more delegates called: “Is this it? – Getting more from the day job!” that I run with Geraldine McCullagh. We would love to come to your place of work and share these ideas and more with your team.

Please get in touch for more information about the free taster session we are running at The Growth Hub in Gloucester on 22nd January 2015.

Copyright: Louise Jenner 2014