I got my very first paid job as a Trainee Sales Coordinator in early 1994. It was with an indigenous wine manufacturing company that used ripe paw paw fruits as raw materials for making its range of products.

The owner had retired from decades of working in a large brewing multinational.

I believe his exposure to organizational procedures taught him the importance of proper training for employees. This is because he made sure I was put through the entire production process, even as I went on with my sales training. And that experience proved valuable, to me, in doing my job – and also contributing to the team’s efforts.

Results-Focused Organizations Make Their Solutions Easy to Understand – and Use

Smart organizations today develop solutions that their target audiences can easily learn to use, by offering DIY (Do-It-Yourself) learning resources.

Think about anything you’ve ever learnt to use. Your new car, computer, smart phone etc. Most people find the user manual or guide that accompanies those items useful.

In many cases, the maker of an item ensures enough information is provided in an easy to understand manner. As a result, we find that today the DIY mentality has caught on in many parts.

And why not? The cost of paying for the provider to come down and give you a one-on-one induction on use of his/her product or service would be high.

In addition, s/he would be limited by the number of people who need such attention. Costs of operation would rise, and by the time that is transferred into the product or service fee, the item could become less affordable.

Learning Resources Work Best When Based on Standard Operating Procedures

But it’s not just for their buyers companies need to do this. Indeed, to turn out solutions that consistently meet market needs, companies also have to create similar conditions internally.

It does not matter if you deliver products or services to your market.

As long as you employ human beings, it is important to give them instructions on how to do it right, from the very beginning.

What steps do you take to get your product or service RIGHT FIRST TIME, EVERY TIME (like an old advert I recall used to say)?

Whatever they are, they will make up what is called your SOP or Standard Operating Procedure.

To ensure your company consistently gets it right, you need to ensure ALL members of your team understand – and conform to – your SOP.

Job based training and learning resources should therefore feature well in your internal operations. They are the vehicles through which the necessary “message” and knowledge will be transmitted to your employees – new or old –so they can master their jobs.

Also provide friendly learning resources/reference materials (e.g. workplace work instructions documents, training manuals etc) they can consult, if doubts arise, or unexpected situations develop.

All of these will make them more familiar with what they need to do over time.

From familiarity, confidence develops. And the confident state of mind drives away uncertainty – meaning the employee will act at work with minimal doubt. Consequently, fewer errors on the job will occur, and mastery will be achieved.

Improved volume and quality of work output by him/her, and others, will ultimately occur routinely!

To Summarize, the Above Described Process Will Result In The Sequence of Benefits Listed Below:

1. Elevated employee job-based confidence level, because they’ll often know exactly what to do, and how.

2. That will result in a significant reduction in unforced errors they commit while at work.

3. Which will make their workplace output (and the company’s) more predictable.

4. And all of the above will enable the company’s planning and decision making to be more profitable.

Depending on the kind of work you do in paid employment, this can be a tough question to answer. In Dr. Ben Carson’s “Gifted Hands”, he provides vivid insights into the many long hours and years of sacrifice that he and members of his team often gave, to save lives.

And We’re All Grateful That They Do Often Choose to Do So…

Isn’t it strange that we accept medical professionals straining their family relationships, to save our lives? Don’t we value time off from work, because we cherish time with our families?

Aha…see how one sided our thinking can be…!

Whenever I hear people say “TGIF (Thank God It’s Friday)” or write it on their Facebook walls, I often smile to myself and recall my days as a shift brewer in Guinness.  

Back then, you could be off duty and still be at work, AND not see anything wrong with it. Most of us were so tuned in to helping the “TEAM” win, that we readily pitched in, sometimes without being asked.

We only needed to see that extra hands (or heads) were needed, to make this decision on our own. Very rarely did a boss (at least in my department – Production/brewing) have to read us the riot act to get us to come in and help.

What Made Us That Willing to Give Up Our Legitimate Rest Time?

Looking back I realise it was not just bachelors or unmarried team members who offered themselves in this manner. Virtually everyone in our department had the attitude.

And it started right from the boss we had.

He led by example. Every day we saw that he gave the job his all – came in early when necessary and left late. He even took over brewer duties if a brewer fell ill or had to be away at short notice.

And on night shifts, if you were not careful, he could make you look like he was the one on site, and YOU were the one at home…with his keen awareness of work progress at key points in the process!

An unfortunate young brewer once fell asleep on night shift, only to get a phone call from our boss. When asked how things were going, he spontaneously responded using estimates based on information that he’d obtained before nodding off.

Unfortunately for him, that night, most things that could go wrong had, just around the time he’d fallen asleep! To make matters worse, the boss had – as was his habit – called the other sections to get an update, BEFORE calling to speak with the brewer.

That phone conversation did not end too well for the brewer that night! But the experience taught him to stay on top of his job, even on night duty.

More importantly, it made him respect his boss the more, and to strive to emulate him (By way of interest, this writer, was that brewer).

We Were Like a Well Trained Athletics Relay Team

The challenging atmosphere created by our boss captured our collective imaginations. Even when off duty, we rarely had problems stopping by to see how work was progressing, towards the week or month’s goal.

For instance, it was not uncommon for team members on their way to an outing with family members, to park their cars outside, and “say hello” to the person on duty.

Conversations would often revolve around how close we were to meeting the week’s brewing target, and other performance issues. Those who could not come round physically would call in by phone.

This made the person on duty understand that everyone expected him
to give it his best shot.

If you’ve done shifts before, you know it’s like running a relay race. Every person must do his best to sustain or improve on the work tempo, to ensure the target is met, or exceeded.

And if one person has a bad run today, the rest of the team do what they can to recover whatever ground has been lost. As much as possible, the blame game is avoided.

Of course we did not live in a perfect world where no conflicts occurred.

They certainly did!

But we had a sound system that kept us focussed on what really mattered: working together to achieve the team’s goal.

Final Words: Establishing Team Spirit Will Make People Willing to Do What Helps The Team

Now I know what I’ve described here is more relevant to shift workers.

However, when you really think about it, people who work 9 to 5 jobs are also on a kind of shift. In fact, back in the breweries, we had some chaps on what we called the DAY shift, covering that time span

That means all that’s really needed is to establish a harmonious working atmosphere. And a good leader, who acts as a catalyst, can make that happen.

Like our boss – Greg – did.

Members would key in, and do their bit – without complaining – even if they have to give up free time.

Little wonder that it was during his time that our department achieved some of the most impressive output performances ever.

I will also add, that working under him proved one of the most useful development periods of my career.

In my humble opinion, the above benefits make adopting a similar approach to his worthwhile.

Ambitious career persons sometimes get carried away by their desire for career advancement. So they do things more to impress decision makers, than to make useful impact in the workplace. Unfortunately, many end up sabotaging the careers they seek to progress in the process. This article offers ideas to help you avoid such a fate.

Wrong Motives Can Lead You Astray…and Cause You Pain

Human nature is like that. Sometimes what we strongly desire pushes us to act out of character. And if we lack access to sincere – and wise – people to call us to order, serious mistakes can happen.

It rarely matters what kind of work you do. What matters is how you play your part, in helping the organisation progress towards its goals.

If you’ve been reading my articles on career development, you’ll know I recommend you AVOID saying “But that’s not my job”…to most genuine requests.

Unless you intend to buy your way to the top, it’s just not a wise thing for a person with career ambitions to say.

But just as I advocate going out of your way, where possible – or necessary – to help out, I do NOT believe in the use of pretence. In other words, trying to curry favour by being a yes-man, or acting subservient, is not worth it.

Most straightforward minded people will see through such actions, and instantly conclude you’re not being sincere. That’s likely to colour their perception of any other thing you do subsequently.

Even when you do something useful, with no hidden motives, they’re likely to read meanings into your efforts. You would be second guessed – a lot…and it can become quite painful.

A Reputation That Makes Others Unwilling to Trust You Will Be Costly

Do not do anything to make people start questioning your motives at work.

Carefully evaluate any activity you wish to engage in, before you take action. Weigh the pros and cons, to see if going ahead will be justifiable, and beneficial to the company.

Consider any potential misinterpretations of your intentions that could occur. Ask a friend if you lack knowledge, insight or experience to do this as thoroughly as is needed. Doing so can save you pain!

Here’s why…

My experience in organisational settings taught me that “silent” (and sometimes not-so-silent) rivalries of all kinds exist. It could be between individuals, groups or even departments.

An employee wishing to flourish in the workplace must learn to navigate those “mine fields” of mistrust and suspicion, in carrying out his/her duties.

No matter how neutral you act/feel, if rivalry exists between your boss and another departmental head, for instance, you must exercise caution.

Let’s say you have a skill you’ve actively put to use to improve your department’s performance.

The other departmental head could request your help in developing similar solutions for her section.

Being a naturally team minded player, with the interest of the company at heart, you could say YES.

And it would normally be the right thing to do.

However, doing so and especially going ahead to use your skills to develop those solutions for your boss’ rival could spell trouble for you later on.

How?

Well, your boss could interpret your action as a betrayal of sorts. What’s more (and worse!), s/he could actually conclude you did it deliberately, or that you’re siding with his/her perceived rival.

Now, understand this.

At your level in the organisation, you may not be able to see what "prize" your boss and his/her rival are "chasing".

They could both be eying a single top management opening. Despite knowing they both need to work for the overall company’s interest, their personal ambitions could drive them to not cooperate as well as they could.

In such instances, if your boss discovers you, a subordinate, helping “the enemy”, s/he could get upset. Some of the bosses can do this subtly.

Instead of making a scene, s/he could make life difficult for you as a punishment.

Others simply let their emotions fly…such that a casual observer could ask: “But why does the boss always speak or act harshly towards you?”

I say all these based on personal experiences and observations.

Final Words: Avoid Interpersonal Complications – Like The Above Mentioned – Altogether!

Depending on how well managed a company is, a subordinate being victimised may – or may not – get “saved” from it.

That’s why it’s always better, to smartly evaluate potential implications of your intended actions, before you take them. That way, you’ll be better able to steer clear of sticky situations, that could derail your career ambitions in the long run.

Keep the above in mind, as you seek to make useful impact to advance your career at work!