Why You Want to Leave Your Job
51% of US workers currently describe themselves as “not engaged” at work, and 17.5% say they are “actively disengaged”. Many of these workers feel stifled by traditional jobs and would like more autonomy, flexibility and freedom in their work. As a result, it is estimated that the number of freelancers in the US will rise from 34% to 40% by 2020. Why do so many people suddenly want to quit the thing that pays their rent?
People want more from work
Maslow’s hierarchy outlines the needs that all humans have. At a basic level we all need food and water. As soon as that need is satisfied we seek shelter and safety. When the basic needs have been met we have higher needs — for belonging, esteem from others, self-esteem and self-actualisation. Work has traditionally met our basic needs, but people today are seeking satisfaction higher up the hierarchy. We now expect our jobs to provide meaning and purpose, or what some are calling Spiritual Intelligence (SQ). Mitroff and Denton define SQ as “the basic desire to find ultimate meaning and purpose in one’s life and live an integrated life”. As people are becoming disillusioned with corporate life, they are seeking alternative lifestyles that allow them to do good in the world, and to be part of a bigger cause.
Why traditional organisations will lose their best people.
Traditional organisations are losing out if they don’t provide meaning and purpose, as young people especially will not want to work there. Young people are no longer seeking a job for life, and will leave roles if they do not provide real meaning and purpose. They also don’t want to work in organisations where they simply ‘follow the rules’.
The stereotype of a typical boss is someone who is arrogant, assertive, domineering and self-important. Organisations run by such leaders become overtly dependent on the boss, with a stifling ‘command and control’ culture. People are likely to say “I follow the rules and do what I am told”. This culture creates interference, manifested in long periods of suppression, which in turn leads to stress. When people simply follow the rules or do what they have been told to there is little room for the potential of the human being to come through, and performance and enjoyment levels will be low.
In a dependent culture, if people don’t do what they are told there is an abundance of blame and judgement. When Managers think that someone has done something wrong, they tend to critisise or blame them. People want to work in organisations where they can have positive, healthy relationships with their colleagues, but if critisicm becomes pervasive in an organisation it damages these relationships.
Telling people what to do is dangerous
If people are heavily dependent on their boss in a high risk job, they may follow the rules that their boss tells them without fully understanding the reason why. If the leader is not looking over their shoulder, however, they may be far more likely to cut corners, and accidents are more likely to happen. If an accident does happen in a dependent organisation, there is far more likely to be blame, punishment and judgement, with little learning about how to do something better next time.
We’ve run out of carrots
Ever since work began, people have resorted to a combination of threat and reward to get other people to do what they want. Fear can certainly motivate to a certain extent, but it can also inhibit people’s creativity and responsibility. The carrot and stick, therefore, are becoming less effective. As Sir John Whitmore states in Coaching for Performance, “We have tried washing the carrots, cooking them and providing bigger ones. We have tried padding the stick and hiding it until we really need it, but neither have worked”. If people are really going to perform, they must be self motivated.
How do you motivate someone?
Self motivation is the holy grail that organisations are looking for, but forcing someone to motivate themselves is a contradiction in terms. Self-motivation by definition lies within the mind of the individual. Organisations need to fully believe that their staff are fully capable and resourceful.
Traditionally, managers give work to those who they consider capable. Whilst a seemingly obvious way of operating, this reinforces to ‘less capable’ people that they can’t do the task, robbing them of a development opportunity. Managers need to focus much more on potential than capability.
Performance = potential — interference
If a Manager truly wants to improve their team’s performance, they need to focus on realising people’s potential and then decreasing interference — those inner obstacles such as fear, doubt, self-criticism, and limiting beliefs or assumptions. Offering people choice and control wherever possible acknowledges and validates their capability and self-esteem.
How do you keep your best people?
Organisations are starting to realise that in order to retain their best people, they need to trust them more. New, successful organisations have moved away from a culture of dependence to a culture of interdependence, where traditional top down hierarchies are being replaced with a new form of devolved leadership and collective responsibility. In these organisations, people are more likely to say “We are truly successful together” than ‘“I follow the rules”. Michelin, for example, have replaced hierarchy with trust at production plants in six countries. They no longer issue orders to staff, and they get ’10 times back from the team’ as a result.
In summary, people want meaning and purpose from their job. They don’t want to be told what to do, and they want their potential to be recognised. They want their managers to focus on reducing interference for them, and they want to work in organisations that are interdependent.
Otherwise they’ll be packing their bags…
This article first appeared on SamParry.co, where I help people lead extraordinary lives. Much of the information for this article came from Coaching for Performance by Sir John Whitmore.
