Lessons in leadership.. the hard way.

Ok.. heres the deal. I love Third Rock. I hate the politics of working in an independent store. Never again will I do it unless I own it myself. Cuz really.. this place I tell you what. I understand what it means to be a manager, and I know what managers in my life instilled in me a desire to work hard and which ones made me want to be lazy. To me a manager needs to be able to treat you like a human and have enough repoire built that they can tell you to get stuff done and let you know when you arent working hard enough without being horrible and mean. I work hard for people that make me feel like Im doing a good job when I work hard. People that tell me Im never doing it good enough make me want to slack off cuz theres no way to reach their desired potential and their being bastards about it. I dont know.. maybe it sounds like I prefer buddy buddy to management stuff. Its not necesarily that.. I just dont think I have to be frowning all the time to get the job done. My staff that works with me three times a week is great, they work hard, listen, and do what I ask. I dont give them grief all the time, but I do tell them when they aren't up to par so they can prove me wrong. Work ethic isnt about pleasing all the bosses, it is about getting the job done the right way, the first time, efficiently, ethically and with a smile on your face. You need to own it. At sixteen I had a work ethic better than most college kids I know now. Thats because my mom showed me you can be proud of how fast and well you do your job.. even washing dishes. I worked in a cafe where we had a lot of dishes all the time.. everyone hated doing dishes.. I loved it. Its concrete work you can do with a smile, efficiently and it makes a big difference in the night. So I did it, every shift as well as I could on top of all the other tasks. It bred in me a pride in my work. In our Chamber choir excellence was the goal of everything. No matter how well we did, we could always do better. But the work it took to get there was the point of it all. And the end result was some amazing concerts, where we could see a huge improvement, were proud of the result and wowed the audience that a highschool choir could sound so professional. Thats where its at. Pride in your work for the sake of the better of all. Not to say Im a good worker, but to say my work makes a difference. Washing dishes makes the night a little less stressful.

Relax. Take pride in your work. Smile and enjoy life. Thats what leadership is about.