Courage My Love

When my smart, well-educated daughter took her first office job in order to earn money for grad school, I felt a tinge of fear. An organization’s hierarchy could insipiently wear down her confidence and intellectual zeal. Working in an administrative support position, in which decision-making was at a minimum, she could fall into the trap that so many office workers fall into… the “clerical mentality.”

Sadly far too many organizations don’t expect or encourage administrative support employees to voice their opinions. In fact, they’re discouraged from doing so early in their orientation period. Poorly designed jobs can make the tasks so mundane, that the employee doesn’t feel much satisfaction or intellectual curiosity about why the work is done.

Unless there is a regular evaluation of the tasks in light of organizational objectives, after a period, the tasks are in danger of becoming rote and meaningless. Working without a full understanding of the meaning of their work eventually takes its toll, as employees stifle their creative and intellectual abilities, and ultimately loose their confidence. It’s a great waste of creative human capacity.

So I worried how my outspoken daughter would fare. I had always tried to impart her with a sense of confidence and assertiveness. Now, in the workforce, would she meekly follow the track that was laid out, suspending her sharp mind, or would she have the courage to voice her ideas and opinions?.

“Don’t be afraid to express yourself…I urged.” She didn’t know what she was in for, as this was going to be her first office experience. Even though she was armed with this advice, I was afraid that the organizational culture could overwhelm her.

About two months into her job, I treated my daughter to lunch in a restaurant near her office. As our salads arrived, I asked her about the job. Her insights were sharp and delivered with the singular clarity of the young.

“Mom, “she said, “all the senior people are constantly out of the office. They take long lunches, and come in late, or go home early. Further, nobody seems very happy there.”

I’m an organizational development consultant- an expert on all the complexities and issues in the work environment. Typically I would describe her office situation using terms such as “dysfunctional organization culture”, “poor employee morale”, “lack of staff involvement”, “insufficient accountability standards,” “ lack of vision”...etc. But her straighforward summary put my lame business jargon to shame.

Then she described an incident the previous day. She had been sitting outside her manager’s office working the reception, (fluently in both official langues I might add-that's what years of French immersion have brought), when she overheard her manager talking on the phone, commenting to someone on some aspect of my daughters progress on the job. After her manager put down the telephone, my daughter went into the manager’s office.

“Am I supposed to pretend that I didn’t hear you talk about me?” she asked calmly. “I’m just learning this job, so if you have any feedback on my performance, I would really appreciate it if you told me first. Further,” she went on, “could you please explain the priority of tasks you’re giving me. You leave notes on my desk and I need a better explanation of what you require. I want to do a good job for you, so you need to communicate to me.”

Wow!

Over my years as a management consultant, I’d delivered numerous lectures on the Performance Appraisal process; how it needs to be a two way communication, how it’s important to treat employees with respect and to assume that they have the intelligence to understand what’s required as long as it was clearly communicated and discussed. My daughter had never heard these lectures- but common sense, as it should, guided her. She had asserted her need as an employee to understand the requirements of her work.

It seems that, as a parent, I had succeeded in instilling in her the confidence and values that, as a consultant, I had sought to instill in clients.

My daughter has gone on to pursue her studies in theatre , film and writing. I doubt if she’ll return to an office job as a career. She may write about it…a future play perhaps. For my part, I'd relish taking her on a lecture circuit, to inspire other staff, smart, creative, educated individuals caught in organizations that don't value their intellect. My message to them…assert yourself, speak your opinion, ask questions about the work, express your new ideas, bring your creativity and talent to the job, don’t suppress your ambition, and courage my love!


Mary Pearson
July 2008
Mary Pearson is a consultant in organization development and leadership, based in Toronto