johnmaconline

The days of supervisor, compliance, shifts, and authoritative micromanagement are over.

I started working in corporate America at a large defense contractor in the early 90s. We worked from 7:30 am to 4:15 pm, with a 45-minute lunch break. At 7:15, my manager walked around the office informally tracking attendance. Same thing at 1:00 and then again at 4:30. We filled out weekly time cards and tracked overtime and compensation time in 15-minute increments.

Tucked behind a drawer in my desk, I discovered a crumpled snapshot of this very office from the 50s. The image revealed a workspace reminiscent of kindergarten classrooms—rows of identical desks directed towards the supervisor’s spot. Occupying each station was an indistinguishable man — crew cuts, white shirts, and dark ties only varied by the presence of eyewear.

Compliance. Work the hours. Do what we say. Ask the boss. Don’t question. Fit in.

As a manager today, you’re equipped with numerous tools to enforce similar compliance. Credentials logs, keystroke monitoring, slack statuses, mandatory 9:00 am Zoom meetings—it’s all trackable.

Throw them away. Disable them. They’re the enemy of hiring and leading great teams.

Because what you need today are adults. Individuals who assume responsibility, make decisions, show up, contribute, communicate proactively, troubleshoot issues, respect their peers, voice disagreements, defend their convictions, and manage the integration of work and home life.

A high-performing team calls for such adults. And your recruitment process must be fine-tuned to identify them.

You’re looking for people who care.

Because people who care invest themselves in the mission, and when people invest in the outcome, the tide rises, and so do the boats.

Investment comes in several forms.

It might be investment in the collective mission. What we’re building here is important; therefore, I care.
Or it might be investment in one’s contribution. I’m important to this mission; therefore, I care.
Or it might be investment in the team. This team and its people are important; therefore, I care.

The invested team member enrolls. They sign up. They’re motivated beyond the paycheck. They see value in the work they do, and we do, and connect it to a greater purpose. This connection breeds their best effort, elevating their work’s quality, commitment to the team, and ability to innovate.

Invested team members display resilience in facing challenges, viewing obstacles as temporary, and spurring innovative solutions. Their commitment unites individuals into a cohesive, collaborative team, fostering a positive work culture centered around a shared goal.

Sometimes they’re ornery, but that’s their investment talking. You should listen to the ornery people who care.

You want people who care. You need people who invest.

You’re not hiring somebody for what they’ve done. You’re hiring them for what they’re going to do.

The number one indicator of future performance is curiosity and excitement about the work. Those who are curious and excited engage with the work. Engagement breeds investment, immersion, and exploration.

People brimming with excitement see their tasks as interesting puzzles waiting to be decoded. They care, wanting to dissect the “why” and “how” behind their tasks. They become craftsmen. Such immersion amplifies their dedication and the quality of their work.

Curiosity is the spark that ignites innovation. It compels individuals to scrutinize the status quo, traverse uncharted territories, and table unconventional solutions. Their distinctive viewpoints keep the organization on its toes, promoting a culture of dynamism and competitiveness.

With the ever-changing professional landscape sprouting new technologies and strategies, curious minds stay ahead of the curve and discover new and changing paths. They help the team adapt to these changes, turning them into a strategic advantage.

Curiosity and excitement are the dynamic forces that drive future performance. When you infuse your team with competent people who are genuinely curious and excited about the work, the rising tide lifts all the boats.

Never hire a clown to perform brain surgery.

My daughter was a Division 1 college gymnast. When she got to college, she and all of her teammates were already highly skilled. Yet, each season, the first week of formal practice focused on the most basic gymnastics skills — tumbling. Here is a team full of elite athletes practicing the same skills that toddlers start on. 

Why? Two reasons:

1. No matter how good you are, you can always get better at the basic skills
2. Being the best at basic skills lays a solid foundation for advanced skills, including learning new skills. 

Step one in understanding that hiring is not dating is to weed out anybody without the basic skill set. You’re building a great team, and a great team needs competent players.

However, competence is not just about advanced skills or an impressive resume. Competence, although required, is the lowest bar to satisfy. We’re not even talking if you don’t have the basic competence.

It’s what comes next that starts to separate the wheat from the chaff. 

Seth Godin’s new book about the future of work is fabulous. 

And coincidently, I happen to be thinking about, experimenting with, and scribbling about this topic right now. Particularly, I’ve been mulling over the art of assembling an exceptional team ready for the work of the future.

In my tenure, I’ve hired great people and missed wildly on others. I’ve successfully built great teams from the ground up and reshaped underperforming teams into great teams. You might be surprised at what I have found to be the best strategy and method for building great teams. 

Key to assessing potential team members is understanding their qualities — what unique flavor they’re adding to the mix. Seth has a great little quotable anecdote:

“Hiring is not dating.”

– Seth Godin

What he means, and I agree with, is that the people you select to work on your collective mission do not have to be someone you want to spend social time together. You’re not looking for a lunch partner. You’re looking for someone who will make the team better and push it farther.

People that make the team better have these characteristics:

• Competence
• Curiosity and Excitement
• Investment
• Adultiness
• Growth

In the coming posts, we’ll take a deeper dive into each of these characteristics.

Stay tuned…

Any work can be work that matters.

If the rent is due, the fridge is empty, or the car is broke, and the bank account reads $0, any work that pays becomes work that matters.

If layoffs are coming, the contract is over, or the leads have dried up, any work that brings some stability or promises work for a little while longer becomes work that matters.

If you’re isolated, wandering, or stuck, any work that builds community, defines a collective mission, or provides new opportunities becomes work that matters.

If you feel undervalued, unrecognized, or overlooked, any work (or leader) that values contributions, capabilities, and celebrates accomplishments becomes work that matters (or a leader worth following).

If you feel unfulfilled, underutilized, or that your potential is unexplored, any work that provides purpose, growth, or aligns with your passions becomes work that matters.

It’s all about what you bring with you to the work.

Where does the soul of your work reside?

Is it within the office walls? Connections with colleagues? Is it within the words you type or the impact you try to make? The pursuit of a goal? Is it within the collective mission?

The answer is none.

The soul of your work is within you.

Whether you work in an office, a bus, the great outdoors, or your home, you always bring your soul with you.

Be kind to it.

The old work paradigm required your compliance.

Park here. Sit there. Show up at this time and work until this time. Do it this way. Use this tool. Get good at our process. Ask the boss. Keep your head down. Do your job. Don’t do my job. Don’t put yourself at risk. Don’t put us at risk. And for the love of all things good, fit in.

We agreed to pay you for your compliance.

The new work paradigm requires responsibility.

You don’t get paid to work hours. You get paid to make a difference.
You don’t get paid to do your job. You get paid to enroll in the mission.
You don’t get paid to do what you’re told. You get paid to bring new ideas.
You don’t get paid to be available. You get paid to contribute.
You don’t get paid to push it down the line. You get paid to take it on.
You don’t get paid to minimize risk. You get paid to try new things that might not work.
You don’t get paid to fit in. You get paid to stand out.

In the new paradigm, you get paid for your humanity.

“This is how we’ve always done it” may sink you.

We love to lock in our processes and methodologies once we’ve had some success with them. That’s just human nature. Familiar patterns, especially ones that have produced success in the past, help us execute with predictability.

We do it for very good reasons.

Constantly rehashing and re-evaluating the way we do things is exhausting.
I need to spend my limited brain cycles elsewhere.
If we’ve had success before, why wouldn’t we again?

But culture changes, a competitor invents new and improved, and the never-ending march of technology transforms our tools and capabilities.

Fancy offices, in-person perks, prime and expensive real estate, and hours worked are the way we’ve always done it. And the big guys, even the big guys at the forefront of the tech sector, don’t want to let it go.

Which offers an opportunity to the upstarts, the rebels, and the troublemakers. Now is the time to be a square peg in a market full of round holes.

In the vast savannah, a pride of lions and an ant colony lived side-by-side.

The male lion, majestic and commanding, lorded over its pride and insisted everyone gather around it at the watering hole. Here, in close proximity to one another, the lion handed out assignments and ensured he could keep tabs on each pride member.

Meanwhile, the ant colony embodied a complex network based on distributed communication, autonomy, and flexibility.

The lion roared with laughter at the ants scattered across the savannah, working without needing to gather in a single place.

“How can they get anything done? Who will protect them? Who will tell them what do to?”

The lion believed in the power of physical unity and took pride in its structured meetings.

One day, a massive sandstorm hit the savannah. The lion found itself lost in the swirling sands. The pride members scattered, not knowing where one another or their leader was. Many perished, their pride smashed beyond usefulness.

The ant colony adapted quickly. Their decentralized operation and robust communication lines ensured their work continued seamlessly. They shifted bases when required, communicating through their resilient network. Yes, they also lost members, but although sad, the colony strived forth undeterred.