Average Work Force

Maybe it’s the era I grew up in. No, that’s not it because there are a lot of people my age who don’t care about their jobs.

It really gets me when people want to have great careers but don’t want to work to get there. They put in as few hours as possible and perform at half-baked levels and then expect their bosses to bow down before them. Amazing.

Many times these half-baked employees have sold themselves as being completely indispensable and, amazingly, their bosses believe it.

There are other employees who work their butts off to put out a better product (it may not be the best, but that’s what their striving for), put in extra hours, get some continuing education and get very little reward for their effort.

What’s wrong? Generally speaking — and I’ve been one of these business people — employers are afraid to cut the cord with the folks who talk up their jobs and don’t do them. I’ve been gutless and it has cost me. Once you see that an employee is adding no value to the organization, and may in fact be dragging it down, cut the cord. There are plenty of the other workers out there, people who want to make a difference.

Businesses are not in the business to provide a job. Businesses are in business to make money. Yes, there is some level of social consciousness that takes over once you make a commitment to an employee (like PTO, working through some bumps in the employee’s road) but there is no reason to keep slackers on the payroll.

Wise up, business people. If you want to make money, surround yourself with people who take pride in their work – take pride in themselves.