Your Role is Calling

Recently, my wife went out of town.

Her absence meant that my dog Harry and I were left to fend for ourselves. My wife – who majored in “Being able to find everything in the world” and “How to turn on major non-TV appliances,” – even left me with lists. This list included a few ridiculous things.  

First up: “Remember to feed the fish.” That is so dumb. I mean, nobody sprinkles fish food in Lake Michigan, and they seem fine. They’re fish. So I crossed those losers off the list.

Another one: “Water the potted plants.” Right. Like something’s going to happen to them in the 106 degree Alabama heat. If they can’t take it, they need to move to Iowa or become fake or something. Another chore gone. The next one was more worrisome.

She’d written down something about laundry and dryers and lint screens that I breezed over. That’s because of a previous terrifying encounter with the washing machine. See, I had expected it to have the only essential buttons to do its job: On. Off. That should be enough, right?

Noooo. It had settings for “Delicates” and “Spin speeds” and some reference to a “Pre-rinse.” Are you kidding me? Pre-rinse? Is this so your “delicates” can get used to the water temperature first? I’m convinced all these buttons actually do the exact same thing: 1) Water 2) Soap 3) Slosh around.  So, from sheer intimidation, laundry got crossed off too. Man, this is getting easier!

Can you guess where this episode is going?

Over the 4 days, my hygiene slipped a little. Movies more violent. My dog started smoking and stayed out once ‘til 2 am with no explanation. I attempted to subsist off Pringles and mustard, but this got old quickly. At the point when I considered a goldfish and dried camellia salad, I knew we were in a maelstrom of maledom.

About mid-way into the trip, I received a phone call from my wife. After I told her Harry and I were “fine” (though smelly and starving), she mentioned, “How insane the airports were, the Rental Car people had tried to double the rate without warning, the driving, navigation, luggage loading and unloading was such a hassle.”

It occurred to me that these were all things I’d have handled if with them. She completed that thought with, “I wish you were here.”

Me, the dog, the fish and a few crispy plants all repeated that phrase back to her. “Awww,” said the clearly-moved audience. But it’s true.

We all have our roles, jobs, specialties. We play our part on the team. When you don’t play your part on the team, the team fumbles, falls or fails entirely. When a team member is out, that absence had better be felt or somebody ain’t that valuable. Oh sure, I’m a fan of cross-training to cover gaps, but it takes a trainer to do it, which is another gift entirely.

In our business you can take the ‘team’ conjecture to individuals and entire departments. Their cooperation and mutual skill sets must enmesh. But do they?

Seeds of Contention

Does your Accounting department assist the Sales department… or feel they’re a bunch of irresponsible overpaid babies?

Does your Web Marketing department assist those in Traditional Marketing… or feel they’re outdated has-beens trying to resurrect the stone-age?

Does your CSR assist the technicians… or get sick of constantly having to make “excuses” for their tardiness, sloppiness and call-back rate for which the CSRs indirectly get blamed?

And let’s go ahead and get brutal here: Does the boss assist all the team members in letting them do their jobs well… or represent eternal task interference and complaint on minor things while taking home a major paycheck?

Do you have cooperation or contention? And have you ever asked? I’d consider either question as among the most valuable a team leader can ever utter.

True Confession Time: A couple of years ago, Hudson, Ink embarked on a new product/service line. As is too often the case in my “Ready, Fire, Aim” mentality, there were some teething pains. Skillsets were still forming. Roles were unclear. Some feelings got hurt. A door or two got slammed. There were tough conversations.

Yet, in the depths of this learning curve and from our different vantage points, a shared destination loomed into view. It’s as if we all began taking turns at the wheel. One did the organizing, another the technical, another the marketing, another the sales funnel, another the customer service…

Respect restored. Roles refined. Goals defined. It was beautiful.

Midway through each year, I encourage you to look at your company goals. Are you getting closer or farther away? To what team are they assigned, and do they have the talent and drive to reach them? If they’re merely ineffective bystanders giving you the false comfort of “Everything’s okay” as you glance off the iceberg, put them in a rowboat. If they’re willing to make the tough choices, and either admit or stretch their limits, keep ‘em.

No matter what, your role is calling.

Adams Hudson