It is the classic "not my job " thinking! Employees persistently stick to their daily routine and do no more than they absolutely must.They refuse to accept any extra work and use the That not in my job description response to defend against such requets/ orders.
The selfish mentality of ,''Why should i make others problem my own?" dictates such actions.A colleague or even the boss may ask a worker to do something extra like helping with a computer support ,maintaining customer relations or performing basic accounting , only to receive an answer of "Its not my job". At times these four convenient words are used even for small jobs like making an appointment , attending to a client or signing for a delivery.
An excuse for what
Do you find yourself turning around and claiming , But its not in my description time and again?
Well, dropping this line may seem quite convenient, but do pause a while and think - is not just an excuse for eschewing responsiblity and passing the buck? Should you refuse to help someone through a problem simply because its not your job ?
Whats more can you really afford to ignore the simple things that will make your work stand out from the crowd? For instance , can you let an important project fail when you could have helped?.
What you are overlooking is that by contantly avoiding tasks, you are the one who stands to lose more than anyone else. Firstly, it conveys a totally lackadaisical attitude to the boss. Your colleagues may even feel that you have let the team down by refusing to help. Moreover, the lastthing managers want to hear during a crisis is a defensive "not in my job description".
Go the extra mile
Treat your job description only as broad indicator of your functions without binding it as what you specifically must do.After all , what is most important is to deliver on existing requirements in a timely and efficient manner.
If this requires you to perform tasks that are beyond your job description and yet within your capablities , then so be it. In other words , when you know what is to be done,just go ahead and do it.
After all if you are willing to work hard and willingly step up to tasks whether it is your specific jobs or not, you will find a significant increase in efficiency.
Just make sure to highlight your extra contributions and a promotion ,bonus or reward ast the least may wing your way.
The experience may even help you to learn somthing new and worthwhile. Not to mention that by extending a helping hand to colleagues.you can ask them for favours later in time of need.
So, the next time someone approaches you with work that does not expressly feature in your job description,break free of the mould and think whether youy can actually help him.
After all , when you are employed, its all your job!
1 comments:
Part of the problem - or, alternately, one possible reason for the problem - is the details of the performance-based employee review system. Employees are often reviewed based solely on meeting goals directly set by their managers. Doing additional work, often not related to their jobs provides little benefit to the worker and may detract from his core duties and therefor his reviews.
I find that firms with a looser review structure and more upward mobility - or lateral mobility - have more employees willing to go the extra mile.
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