Thrive Thoughts: Self-Sufficiency through Interdependence
THRIVE THOUGHTS: AUGUST 2007
Self-Sufficiency through Interdependence
By Mike Cook
MIKE COOK is founding partner of Vitalwork, Inc. (www.vitalwork.com), an organizational development firm that helps companies and employees compete in the outsourced economy. He is available for keynote talks on “The Upside for Individuals in the Globalized Economy” and half-day workshops on “The Basic Principles of Creating an Engaged Culture.” His new book is THRIVE: Standing on Your Own Two Feet in a Borderless World (St. Lynn’s Press) (www.thrivebook.com).
Fact: Americans are working harder and longer than ever before. How much harder can you work? Have you reached a point where you’re thinking to yourself, “This is not worth it!”? Or maybe you’ve gone a step further and said it out loud in public…and then watched yourself go right back to doing what you were doing before in the very same fashion. After all, you’re supposed to be self-sufficient, independent, self-reliant, right? This is the American way, after all.
Is it really “not worth it”? Could it be that the way we go about our lives, at work or otherwise, is the source of our frustration? Perhaps we are hindered by an outdated mindset as much as we are by a set of challenging global circumstances. This is an intriguing possibility.
It is highly unlikely that your company will shift away from “doing more with less” and suddenly start adding new co-workers by the truckload. So you’re faced with the alternative of working on your own limitations of skill, ability, expertise…yet again. Spare me! I don’t know about you, but that prospect leaves me feeling even more desperate than when I am working longer hours. They are my limitations, so how much better can I expect to get? All the way up to mediocre? That doesn’t sound appealing. Maybe a shift in mindset and approach is worth considering.
Unraveling Self-Sufficiency and Rugged Independence
In American mythology, as expressed in stories, songs, and movies, the individual who lives by the ethic of “rugged independence” is revered. Often we hear the term “self-sufficiency” uttered in the same breath as rugged independence as if a) they were the same thing or b) the only way to achieve rugged independence were to follow the path of self-sufficiency.
I believe that we may have confused our fundamental purpose as Americans (self-sufficiency) with a strategy for getting there (rugged independence). And I believe rugged independence is not even a viable strategy at that. This confusion has carried right over into our places of employment, where we actually have mechanisms in place to institutionalize the confusion. We call them Annual Performance Reviews and Merit Increases.
Performance reviews and merit increases are dreaded by many, from those receiving them to those doling them out. All they amount to are reviews of and rewards for your strengths and reminders of your limitations as an individual. Where did anyone ever get the idea that all the performance with which you are associated can be traced directly back to your actions? What more brilliant method could we have invented to equate self-sufficiency with rugged independence and continue the illusion that there is something like “individual performance” in an organizational setting? That we really get anything of value done all by ourselves?
Until we disentangle these concepts, we will remain individually bound and powerless to deal with the current economic realities and workplace bottlenecks that we all face. We will continue to work longer hours. We will continue to be unable to manage the costs of production and operation that are rapidly driving employment opportunities to other parts of the globe. What can we do? We can start by realizing that we are ripe for transformation in our basic beliefs about successful working and living as Americans.
Appreciating Interdependency…and Meaning It
Consider this. What if we were to focus on accountability and define it as “seeing to it that something happens?” What if, rather than reviewing individual performance (doing something), we were to look at results that were caused? We could then redefine self-sufficiency as a measure of the value of the accomplishments an individual could be responsible for causing without actually doing. How might we think and work in that context?
Leveraging—In making this shift, we would no longer be limited by what we are not. Instead of leaving our performance review looking for a way to work on our limitations, we would be focused on creating new ways we could combine our talents with those around us. By leveraging ourselves and our co-workers, everyone’s work life could be a) more productive and b) more satisfying. What a relief! We would free ourselves to respect what we are and be informed by what we are not. This way, we would not take on tasks and roles that others might perform better. Self-sufficiency would no longer be a process of separating ourselves from others. In this context self-sufficiency means being fine with yourself, knowing you are sufficient, and only being limited by your willingness to engage with those around you in a context of mutual benefit.
Appreciating—Since we are truly self-sufficient only by engaging with those around us, we need to acknowledge those who help us make it look easy. This can be done by Appreciating Interdependency, freeing ourselves to let those who support us truly know how much we need and authentically appreciate them. Lavish praise on your associates! Let them know you could not add as much value at work without them.
I regularly conduct development classes for managers inside my client companies. As I interact with my class members, I am continually amazed at how they take for granted the necessity of building and maintaining ground-level operational relationships. Here is an example of what I am pointing to when it comes to authentically Appreciating Interdependency:
One day last week, I mentioned to a class that the following morning would be a busy one for me. I had a meeting with my client sponsor in the morning and then two much more important meetings after that. They wondered, what would be more important than meeting with my client sponsor? I told them that the first meeting was with an administrative assistant who works for the vice president. I contact her only once each month. She does not work for me, know me, or essentially have anything else to do with me. When I do contact her, it is always for the same purpose: to get my monthly invoice approved and in the payment queue. I wanted to meet her in person and thank her for the critical assistance she provides each month. The total meeting time was only 10 minutes. (By the way, she was very pleased that I stopped in).
The second meeting was with the event planners and travel agents who handle all the logistical arrangements for the sessions I conduct for this client. This group was also very pleased that I made the effort to stop by. I went from cubicle to cubicle introducing myself and shaking hands, telling all of them how much I appreciate the terrific service they provide. Total meeting time: 20 minutes. Total value…priceless!
Without the contribution these people provide, I would be confronted not only with a mountain of details, but also by the limitations I face in the realm of managing details and logistical concerns. With the assistance of these administrators, event planners and travel agents, I can do amazing things. They help me make it look easy.
Are these really such hard concepts to grasp? I’d like to think not. Self-sufficiency that is understood as rugged independence is out. Interdependence is in. More to the point, can we any longer truly afford to work the way we have been working? Is it really worth it?
