Secular Sage

My manager recently made an interesting comment in regards to his perception of me, it was not derogatory, it was what he perceived my strengths and weaknesses to be. In his mind, and perhaps the mindset of the wider team, was that I was footloose and fancy free. I had no regard for process, organisation, rigorous execution. The direct implication was that I prefer not to have the administrative headache of a large team.

Who is this me I wondered? His description didn’t tally with my perception of myself. I love people, I am highly social, I love bringing younger people through, helping them find their groove and moving them forward. I also love the opportunity afforded to me by a team, leverage. I get to leverage my skills, knowledge and talent while at the same time giving them ownership on the very edge but aligned with their capabilities to make more of them (it is my firm belief that we should live on the edge of being overwhelmed and bored). I also found that a lot of people are drawn to this trait and so my team grew rather organically. Most people, as it turns out, do not want to waste their time, they want to do something useful, productive and measurable. I am also a master of execution, I love getting my hands dirty, getting into the detail and getting a job done. I like measurable outcomes ones. 

But the truth is that I see administration minimalistically. I will dabble in the bare minimum beauocracy required to deliver a product or service. What I realised, as I thought about all of this, is that the trait that actually defined me was not sloppiness or disregard for process but rather my contrarian nature. In an environment where the bureaucrats had long since taken over the show, I was faithfully playing the devils advocate, I was resisting bureaucracy at all costs. If I was going to err it wound be an error of a different type. I had determined this to be the primary problem and be dammed if you think I will look to turn up the dial! 

People were drawn to me for this very reason, and I always had ideas and ways to make ourselves useful. So the team had grown rather organically. 

My manager had got it completely upside down. In an effort to remain on course, delivering measurable value as efficiently as possible, and in an effort to draw and retain the best talent I was bucking the system. Precisely because I cared immensely about work, about people and about building something valuable, I had created an environment where these could thrive.   

Do not be afraid to establish a culture in the team that reflects your values. This is not a cancer but hyper healthy microcosm which over time can expand like good culture does. Before you get out, try and reform from within, this can result in keeping the best people engaged, the very catalysts for a better future.