THE TIMES THEY ARE A-CHANGIN'
Words and Music by Bob Dylan
1963, 1968 Warner Bros. Inc
Renewed 1991 Special Rider Music
“Come gather 'round people
Wherever you roam
And admit that the waters
Around you have grown
And accept it that soon
You'll be drenched to the bone.
If your time to you
Is worth savin'
Then you better start swimmin'
Or you'll sink like a stone
For the times they are a-changin'.”
I was walking across the parking lot the other morning at 9:05am, thinking as I always do about what people might be thinking if they were watching me from the lunch room. I am keenly aware that leaders are messaging with their every action, word, and habit. Credibility is nothing more than the alignment of your words and actions. Did they think I was coming from home? Or a meeting? Or from a leisurely breakfast? One of those was in fact true, but how could anyone tell? Then it hit me, it really didn’t matter, because after 23+ years, I have earned the right to come in on my own time. No one should be judging me. I have heard that before, others say that, so it must be true. I come in at this time because I think I have earned the right after all these years. I take a liberal lunch hour because I have earned the right to do so. It’s ok to shop online or extend my personal visits, because I have earned the right. This Saturday, it finally hit me – what is the difference between “earning the right” and “setting the standard.”
You see, rarely does anyone say, I have earned the right to come in early. Or earned the right to be at my desk, working at 8:45am. Or say, hey, I can’t talk right now because I am in the middle of a project. Walk with me through the office for a moment. Do you see people who start their working day at 9:30am (or later)? Do see people who spend significant time chatting about the issues of the day – well beyond a polite and brief interaction? Do you see people putting their things away early, so they can be out of the door at 4:45? I do, and I see so much more. Widen the lens of perspective and look with me.
Do you see General Motors ready to declare bankruptcy because they have over $2,000 per car in retiree costs and medical benefits that their non-unionized competitors do not? I see a license plate recently that says, “Universal Health Care is a Right.” I see people who believe it is their right to cut dangerously in front of my car to get ahead of me. Who is granting these rights, anyway? I was thinking they might have come from the Declaration of Independence where I was pretty sure certain rights were unalienable. So I pulled up a copy and here is what the document says, “We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.” So, I am not so sure that the creator endowed us with the right of universal healthcare or the right to cut me off. I do believe the benefactors of the GM Union contracts have a right to enjoy their negotiated benefits. One can only hope that GM does not manage their finances like our government, underfunding or borrowing against a future that they once thought was certain and now, who knows? And what about me saying that I have earned the right to come in late and there sure wasn’t anything that led me to believe that I could grant myself my own employment rights?
Let me say that the times, they are a changing.
I was not granted this right, in fact it is not a right at all. A right is defined as “a just claim or title, whether legal, prescriptive, or moral.” I have noticed that this claim is always coupled with an explanation of some deviation from an acceptable standard and is most commonly justified by some nebulous standard of longevity. Being late, is not a just claim. I was, in fact mentally defending my own mediocrity. And that is what I believe happens nearly, if not all, of the time. Saying essentially, I have been around here long enough that I no longer have to adhere to the standards of excellence that we ask others to conform. You work here 23 years like me and you too can grant yourself the right to come in late. That doesn’t sound so good when I put it like that, does it? Simply put, we need to revolutionize our thinking. There is a better way and we all should hold ourselves accountable to something far greater. That Creator mentioned in the Declaration of Independence would never have granted the potential for excellence if we weren’t expected to seek it.
How else will we ensure the future of our enterprise? I can hear it now; “I used to work for this great company. You could do whatever you wanted there, it was so much fun. They kept their people for a long time because everyone loved it. Come and go as you please, shoot, our President didn’t even come in until after 9:00am.” “And where are they now?’ “Oh, they went out of business, but what a great place to work.” As leaders, and yes we are all leaders; we must set a standard of excellence and expect everyone who joins us to live up to that standard. There can be no other way. We must develop a collective intolerance for mediocrity. Mediocrity is like cancer. It starts with one bad cell, then it spreads to neighboring cells, then it attacks your vital organs and finally it kills you. I have zero tolerance for mediocrity.
I believe that in life, there is only one person I can change and that is me. I also know that an organization will never exceed the abilities of its leaders. Starting today, I am holding myself to a new standard - fulfill my potential for excellence. I will no longer allow myself to justify my own mediocrity with my 23+ years of experience. This is what I feel I must do to make sure I am doing my job. (See Job vs. Role) I challenge you to do the same. When our leaders set a standard of excellence for themselves, three things will happen. First, we will raise the bar for everyone. Second, we will quickly see who is with us. Third, I make this commitment; I will try with all of the skill and energy that I possess to build this company so that we never have to leave an excellent employee behind.
It would be a shame if all of those rights we granted to ourselves wind up killing this company. Let us watch others die from the cancer of mediocrity while we enjoy the benefits of the pursuit of excellence.
Words and Music by Bob Dylan
1963, 1968 Warner Bros. Inc
Renewed 1991 Special Rider Music
“Come gather 'round people
Wherever you roam
And admit that the waters
Around you have grown
And accept it that soon
You'll be drenched to the bone.
If your time to you
Is worth savin'
Then you better start swimmin'
Or you'll sink like a stone
For the times they are a-changin'.”
I was walking across the parking lot the other morning at 9:05am, thinking as I always do about what people might be thinking if they were watching me from the lunch room. I am keenly aware that leaders are messaging with their every action, word, and habit. Credibility is nothing more than the alignment of your words and actions. Did they think I was coming from home? Or a meeting? Or from a leisurely breakfast? One of those was in fact true, but how could anyone tell? Then it hit me, it really didn’t matter, because after 23+ years, I have earned the right to come in on my own time. No one should be judging me. I have heard that before, others say that, so it must be true. I come in at this time because I think I have earned the right after all these years. I take a liberal lunch hour because I have earned the right to do so. It’s ok to shop online or extend my personal visits, because I have earned the right. This Saturday, it finally hit me – what is the difference between “earning the right” and “setting the standard.”
You see, rarely does anyone say, I have earned the right to come in early. Or earned the right to be at my desk, working at 8:45am. Or say, hey, I can’t talk right now because I am in the middle of a project. Walk with me through the office for a moment. Do you see people who start their working day at 9:30am (or later)? Do see people who spend significant time chatting about the issues of the day – well beyond a polite and brief interaction? Do you see people putting their things away early, so they can be out of the door at 4:45? I do, and I see so much more. Widen the lens of perspective and look with me.
Do you see General Motors ready to declare bankruptcy because they have over $2,000 per car in retiree costs and medical benefits that their non-unionized competitors do not? I see a license plate recently that says, “Universal Health Care is a Right.” I see people who believe it is their right to cut dangerously in front of my car to get ahead of me. Who is granting these rights, anyway? I was thinking they might have come from the Declaration of Independence where I was pretty sure certain rights were unalienable. So I pulled up a copy and here is what the document says, “We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.” So, I am not so sure that the creator endowed us with the right of universal healthcare or the right to cut me off. I do believe the benefactors of the GM Union contracts have a right to enjoy their negotiated benefits. One can only hope that GM does not manage their finances like our government, underfunding or borrowing against a future that they once thought was certain and now, who knows? And what about me saying that I have earned the right to come in late and there sure wasn’t anything that led me to believe that I could grant myself my own employment rights?
Let me say that the times, they are a changing.
I was not granted this right, in fact it is not a right at all. A right is defined as “a just claim or title, whether legal, prescriptive, or moral.” I have noticed that this claim is always coupled with an explanation of some deviation from an acceptable standard and is most commonly justified by some nebulous standard of longevity. Being late, is not a just claim. I was, in fact mentally defending my own mediocrity. And that is what I believe happens nearly, if not all, of the time. Saying essentially, I have been around here long enough that I no longer have to adhere to the standards of excellence that we ask others to conform. You work here 23 years like me and you too can grant yourself the right to come in late. That doesn’t sound so good when I put it like that, does it? Simply put, we need to revolutionize our thinking. There is a better way and we all should hold ourselves accountable to something far greater. That Creator mentioned in the Declaration of Independence would never have granted the potential for excellence if we weren’t expected to seek it.
How else will we ensure the future of our enterprise? I can hear it now; “I used to work for this great company. You could do whatever you wanted there, it was so much fun. They kept their people for a long time because everyone loved it. Come and go as you please, shoot, our President didn’t even come in until after 9:00am.” “And where are they now?’ “Oh, they went out of business, but what a great place to work.” As leaders, and yes we are all leaders; we must set a standard of excellence and expect everyone who joins us to live up to that standard. There can be no other way. We must develop a collective intolerance for mediocrity. Mediocrity is like cancer. It starts with one bad cell, then it spreads to neighboring cells, then it attacks your vital organs and finally it kills you. I have zero tolerance for mediocrity.
I believe that in life, there is only one person I can change and that is me. I also know that an organization will never exceed the abilities of its leaders. Starting today, I am holding myself to a new standard - fulfill my potential for excellence. I will no longer allow myself to justify my own mediocrity with my 23+ years of experience. This is what I feel I must do to make sure I am doing my job. (See Job vs. Role) I challenge you to do the same. When our leaders set a standard of excellence for themselves, three things will happen. First, we will raise the bar for everyone. Second, we will quickly see who is with us. Third, I make this commitment; I will try with all of the skill and energy that I possess to build this company so that we never have to leave an excellent employee behind.
It would be a shame if all of those rights we granted to ourselves wind up killing this company. Let us watch others die from the cancer of mediocrity while we enjoy the benefits of the pursuit of excellence.
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