Today is Boss Day - how do you celebrate?

Translated from Ralf Junge's blog entry: "Heute ist Boss-Day - wie feiern Sie?"

"The way you work I would like to have vaycay."

"Flu is the weakness of character."
"You won't like me but I don't give a ****" 

„Our intern wanted to call it a day before I do. We both laughed.“

You might know more of those phrases? These were just a few selected examples of mean Boss statements, which the German site  BADASS BOSS for instance collects and publishes. I had to chuckle and laugh a couple of time when reading such statements. But. Actually, it is quite saddening to have a proof of such boss-attitude still existing. An attitude of arrogance and dictatorship. I for myself already got to know specimen like these - especially the first sentence was merely preached at my first job after graduating. 

Such behavior by superiors are hardly tolerated without having corresponding consequences. Since there are employer rating platforms and social media channels, frustrated employees are able to counter. And what day would be best than todays Boss Day!?

The Boss Day was declared in 1958 in the USA by Patricia Bays Haroski. She chose the birthday of her father who was, according to her, the examplary boss. Todays this day is seen as occasion to thank the own boss or tell him what the deal is.

Sudies show, the behavior of boss'/superiors to be one of the strongest factor regarding employees motivation, as well as being a base of overall employee satisfaction. However, we hear of bad working atmosphere too often, branded by fear of ones own boss, who loves sitting nose-up-ed on his thrown, losing the connection to his employees. For observers only, such "The office"-boss might be funny. It seems as if some boss's haven't cought the irony of the show just yet and adapted to the main character. Unfortunately, such behavior is cruel reality to too many employees still. So, why not considering  todays Boss Day as a reason to make a change. 

How do you celebrate the Boss Day? With flowers for your boss or a negative rating on the internet?

Ralf

The Five Most Important Things

Translated from Ralf Junge'es blog entry "Die fünf wichtigsten Dinge"

What if your company´s employées come to work each day with a bright smile and are embracing their job because it gives them the feeling of accomplishment and fulfills them? - Unrealistic! Yer, I thought so, too.

Lately I have looked more intensively into the subject of Corporate Culture and Leadership and I came upon this interesting book named  "The Big Five for Life" by John Strelecky. If you did read his book, you wouldn't find the intial question of mine less unrealistic as it appears. More likely it is a question of the Coporate Culture after all. 

Strelecky describes a leadership principle which aims to accomplish a balance between personal aims of Life and Job - these aims are the "Big Five". The idea goes back to having Safaris in Africa which are only titled successful when the five infamous animals of the wild were really seen - Lion, Leopard, Rhino, Elephant and Buffalo. As there are also the five most important things man has on his personal bucket list. The accomplishment of those are ones own benchmark for success and realization. The Big Five serve the compliance of the "Purpose for Existing (PE)" which every person and company should define in the first place. The better the employée's PE fits to the company's the higher the likelihood of a long and fulfilling employer-employée-relationship for both parties. 

For that matter a Corporate Culture has to develop in which well qualified people are hired who will have receive the freedom to figure out how to work successfully - again for both sides.

As written in the book, talented "people don't need somebody monitoring their behavior."  They don't work that well because they are monitored, but because they can identify themselves with their work and like their job.

When recruting new employées already, Human Resources Decider have keep an eye on the matter if the preferred candidate fits to the Corporate Culture, not if the candidate fits the profile of the vacant position in each detail. If employées find fulfillment and accomplishment in their Job, the risk of psychological diseases such as Burn-Out Syndrome is reduced and more energy and creativity is put in as effordt by the employée.

Nothing hinders a project more than a person who has the wrong job or is notoriously unhappy.   

„The Big Five for Life“  is a very interesting book which certainly contents some impulses and much food for thought in regard to the own Corporate Culture and ones own Leadership. It nudges to question a few things - the own way to work, leadership and certainly the own path to self-realization.

RJ