Why Work Sucks and How to Fix It_ The Results-Only Revolution - Cali Ressler [61]
Once this change moves beyond Best Buy, we envision human resources policies across corporate America coming under question. Mealtimes, break times, sick leave, bereavement policies—any tool we currently use to deal with employees as people starts to look strange in a ROWE, where people get to be people all the time. A ROWE can turn a business’s world upside down. But mostly it’s the bad stuff that gets turned upside down. The good aspects of work—that people want to make an impact, that they want to grow personally and professionally, that they want to make money and be passionate about what they do—none of that changes.
If we’ve done our job right then you are now asking yourself what you can do to bring ROWE into your life. This is indeed the next challenge: How do you take something that grew and evolved organically within an organization over the course of several years and share it with the rest of the world? How do you advance the cause of ROWE?
We don’t use the word cause lightly. As much as a ROWE is a new way of working it is just as easily described as a new way of living. We want to see the entire world in a ROWE, from the most powerful executive to the entry-level “peon” who is so new to the company they don’t know where the bathrooms are yet. In order to do this we’re going to need to educate people about ROWE, to advocate that individuals and companies change, and to advocate for our rights under this new way of thinking. For more information on what we’re doing to lead this movement visit www.culturerx.com. But in the meantime we offer these words of advice.
First, we’re asking that people who are excited about this idea explore their own attitudes and beliefs about work. At the end of this book we have included a “How ROWE Are You?” quiz. We encourage you to take the quiz yourself and give it to your friends. There is a score at the end, but that’s less important than going through the exercise of figuring out how your own particular workplace ticks. The quiz is a good way of opening your eyes to the gritty details of why work sucks for you.
The next thing you can do is start working on your own behavior. Think back to the littering example in chapter three. Once people realized that they were polluting their highways, cities, and neighborhoods, they changed. You stop throwing that soda can out the window of your car. Just taking that step means something when you’re tackling a problem that requires social change.
It’s the same with Sludge. Practice not Sludging people. At first you’re still going to think Sludge, but if you can avoid saying it that is going to make a difference. Refuse (quietly or noisily) to take part in Sludge Conspiracies. Reassure people who are Sludge Justifying that you don’t need to hear their time excuse, and work on not Sludge Justifying yourself. If they’re getting their work done, you have no beef with them. And watch yourself when you find yourself Sludge Anticipating. All that worry is a waste of energy and brain power.
Once you’re not Sludging, you will find a change comes over some people—not all, but some. When you stop justifying your actions in the face of time, you’ll find that some people will stop slinging Sludge. Whether they consciously realize it or not, it’s no fun for them to fling crap if they’re not getting a reaction out of you. The same goes for Sludge Conspiracies. If you don’t participate, if you don’t show yourself to be part of the tribe, then people won’t include you in their nonsense. People who want to engage in Back Sludge have to go elsewhere to get their Sludge fix.
We also encourage people to start using terms like Sludge. We’ve found that a powerful way to face adversity is to name it. Now that we have