Part 3 – A New National Pastime?
( This is the 3rd and final part of my blog on Marshall Goldsmith’s new best seller – Mojo. )
Yes, baseball season has finally started. And many of us gluttons for punishment will now have a new source for our daily dose of pain. For me personally, the preferred sources of pain are the (mis)fortunes of the Dallas Mavericks and Dallas Cowboys. They generally keep me well supplied from September to around June or a Mavs play-off exit (whichever comes first) each year. However, after the Mavs season ends and before the Cowboys season begins, there is a certain emptiness in my life each year. I have considered diversifying my couch potato portfolio of pain by subscribing to the miseries of the Texas Rangers, but it is too radical a lifestyle change for me to make all of a sudden.
But perhaps I digress, my friends.
In Mojo, Marshall mentions research by DDI that shows we all spend an average of 15 hours on a common activity. Marshall conducted his own research and found his findings to be the same as those of DDI. No matter where we live, what sport we follow, and which team we root for, chances are we all spend about 15 hours a week complaining about our Boss, or maybe about our Management. This is a threat to the status of Baseball as our national pastime. And even though I am no fan of Baseball, this statistic disturbs me. Hence this blog.
At first glance, 15 hours may seem inaccurate to you. For me personally, the figure did not sound right. So I decided to test it for a week, and was not surprised by what I found. For me – 15 hours is just not enough time to bitch about my Boss. I need more time. He has no clue where he is, where he wants to be and he certainly has no idea how to get from where he is to where he wants to be. You may admire my guts for writing this out in a blog. People have been fired for less. But my loyalty to my readers commands me to be honest. This is both courageous and sad. I am self-employed.
What about you?
How many hours a week do you think you spend on complaining about management?
How do you feel about that number, whatever it may be?
Is it too much, too little or just right?
What would you do different to reduce that number?
And what would you do if you got back some of that time?
A scarier thought, now – what if you are a manager?
What do you get when you multiply the number of people who report into you, by 15? That would be the number of hours people spend bitching about you each week.
How do you feel about that number, whatever it may be?
Is it too much, too little or just right?
What would you do different to reduce that number?
And what would people do if they got back some of that time?
I don’t know about you, but I know what I would. I would watch Baseball.
Try it. Tell me what you learned. And remember to read Marshall’s book – Mojo.
Copyright 2010 Org Whisperers