Executive: we associate this term with management positions; however according to the Dictionary of the Spanish Language; being executive refers to one who does not wait, nor does execution differ, that is, action.
On the other hand, the same dictionary defines the term life as: Way of living in order to profession, job or occupation and Food necessary to live or maintain existence.
An executive in life is one who takes charge and takes responsibility for what allows him to have a way of life and that is also food to maintain existence.
Since the title that gives rise to this article turns out to be the slogan of my office, people often ask me, "What do you mean by that?" Or I hear things like: "I like how it sounds, but what is it like to be an executive in life and human at work?"
I am writing this article with the desire to answer these questions.
I would like to start with the term Executive. In general, and especially in the business field, we associate this term with management positions; however according to the Dictionary of the Royal Academy of the Spanish Language; being executive, among other assertions, refers to one who does not wait, nor does execution differ, that is, action.
On the other hand, the same dictionary defines the term life as: (1) Way of living in order to profession, job, trade or occupation and (2) Food necessary to live or maintain existence.
In such a way that from my perspective, an executive in life is one who takes charge and takes responsibility for what allows him to have a way of life and which is also food to maintain existence.
From this perspective, I must say that my conception of work is: "food for the spirit" which is curiously how Branden defines self-esteem. The logic is the following, if work generates remuneration and with it you live and literally feed on that, that this is a positive source of energy is extremely important in Life; Therefore, performing a job with pleasure, with pleasure, with fun, becomes a vital part of life and I refer to the first definition that I gave of life, in previous paragraphs.
It remains for us to answer, what is it to be human at work. Beyond at work, it is important to understand that the term human refers to people and that is the first point, we are people and we deal with people inside and outside of work. But sometimes, some executives think of "the people" as an entity, with the obligation to fulfill, it is true, there is an obligation, but this is remunerated, which also generates rights.
With these two antecedents it is important to remember that the coin always has two sides and that Before reacting to the one that we know or think we know, we must know the other, to make a higher quality decision, but above all, to make those with those of us who work, because a bad decision will not only detract from the image of authority before our subordinates, but it will also generate a lack of motivation and a lack of credibility that will be difficult to recover.
In this way, the question arises for me, what are the mistakes that, as a boss, are made more frequently and that affect a demotivation or reluctance on the part of subordinates? Here is the result of my questioning, which I hope for the sake of my own development and that of others, avoid them, for which I will also tell you how to do it.
1. Take for granted that people know
As in any communication process, it is important not to assume, but to make sure; the fact that people have a certain position does not guarantee that they know. The first question is who taught you? And the next, how did you learn? People by nature, out of fear or pain, will hardly admit to a superior that they do not know how to do things. How to avoid it? Dedicate time to employees, teach them and make sure they have learned it and then yes, you will be ready to ask what I taught you and have confidence that you will deliver it knowing how to do it and without errors and beyond this, the principle that a hour invested in teaching, you will save 4 or 5 when executing.
2. Prevent people from making mistakes
Doesn't a child who learns to walk fall? Usually when this happens the mother is close and with encouragement and applause she says: "Get up, nothing happened!" and only in circumstances where the fall is strong does she help him to get up and that is the confidence that the child develops, knowing that he can do it alone and that at any given moment he has support. How to avoid it? Promoting initiative in the people under our charge, if you make a mistake you will not do anything beyond your area of influence. It is important to highlight the difference between helping her and doing it for her, in which case we will make her dependent on us.
3. Delegate activities, not complete tasks
It is important that people know in which part of the process they are contributing and the importance of their task within it. It is like wanting to make a cake and to achieve it each one contributes a different ingredient, if it is not known what it is for a cake and on what occasion that cake will be consumed, the team members might think that nothing happens if they do not contribute their ingredient, finally, there are others more. How to avoid it? Keeping your work team informed, it is necessary for people to know what decisions they can make, which ones they cannot, who else does, why something is being done and why it is important that each one does what they have to do. Everything is part of a PROCESS, they are not isolated tasks.
4. Speak badly of your boss, other managers, or the company
The image that is generated is negative, because something similar to what is described at the beginning of this article happens and also remember that one is the image of the company. There are two probable questions in your interlocutor: 1) If this is how he talks about his boss or about x person, what will he not say about me? And 2) If he complains so much, what does he do there? In either case, the image it projects is one of disloyalty. How to avoid it? If you do not agree with something, without a doubt, you should express it, but with the right person, that is, the person involved in the disagreement, and the annoyance may be expressed, but then a solution proposal must also be provided.
5. Believe that employees are always available
We must remember that we work with people and that if we like to have time together with the family, afternoons off, a thank you for a job well done, what would make us think that the people in our charge do not? Actually nothing, the serious thing is to think that when you are the boss you can do it and the subordinates cannot. How to avoid it? Think that the coin always has two sides, what would happen if your boss behaved with you as you do with your subordinates?
6. Try to keep employees who want to leave
People have the right to grow, including us. And even more so, if we teach them. Is that person so good at doing their job that no one could replace them? Don't be fooled, that means you haven't trained anyone else and that is just the boss's job. How to avoid it? Allowing people to grow and develop, after all it will always be better for them to seek us out for guidance than to stay and work reluctantly.
I hope that these contributions in this article make you reflect on the difficult work it is to manage people and be a good boss, after all as I have said on previous occasions, it is the little things that make a big difference to people. I did not forget it! And I invite you to put it into practice, because that will mean that you are on the way to becoming an executive in life and human at work.
