On the whole, it is all in your mind. Do you see yourself as an employee or a professional who earns a fee.
It makes a huge difference. The employee mindset is the death of progress. Any employee, even a good one, is by definition devoid of ownership. Ownership comes only when you transcend for being an employee to an owner….And that can never happen till you start believing that your month end / beginning pay packet is not a salary but a professional fee paid by the company for the services that you render.
You become a businessman offering your services. That single thought change, often makes the difference between feeling ownership or feeling strangled. Of course, like any contractual business, there are rules of engagement. There are norms to follow. However the upside to this thought change is tremendous.
It is the difference between feeling exploited and being a partner in success.
Inculcating this thought in your team often spells the difference between success and failure of your corporate objectives.
As long as I was in corporate, I strongly believed in my ownership. The day I felt like an employee, I left and set up a company of my own. The work I am doing now is not different to what I was doing, and yet the best work that I do now is often for companies who give me the space to function....the freedom to think and the respect that is due to an equal.
Companies who treat me like a vendor, often become suffocating, resulting in either them kicking me out or the team - my team - rejecting them.
Strangely enough, it is an Indian corporate that inculcated these feelings in me. I remember joining Airtel almost 20 years back as a Regional Brand Manager. I remember the culture of the company...the values of ownership that was instilled in each and every one of us....the leadership workshops....the empowerment....etc.
It was such a liberating experience. We were allowed mistakes and people - many levels senior to us used to talk to us as if they cared....and I dare say they did. Some of the best work that I have ever done was done in that period.
That company spoiled me. They were not the only one. In those heady days of national progress and overall development, corporates all over the country behaved in the same manner - pretty much. I have heard similar stories from my friends in Tata, Infosys, Torrent, ITC etc etc....In those days we used to have arguments about the superiority of our company....
My father strongest.
At some point of time...all of this changed. Corporate India couldnt quite handle its own success. It lost humility. The end of humility spelt the rise of ego and shame ..... and hierarchies to end all hierarchies.
That's when the demise started.
So it's up to you. Decide. Which is the life you want to live?
Comments