Tag Archives: Discontent

Teambuilding Through Implied Discontent

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“Do you want to spend the rest of your life selling sugared water or do you want a chance to change the world?” – Steve Jobs, The line he used to lure John Sculley as Apple’s CEO.

The quote above is a powerful question. When you are working to build a team you don’t just want bodies occupying seats you want individuals who are motivated, passionate and gave a vision for what you are seeking to accomplish in business.

The first part of the question focuses on the perceived trivial nature of what someone is currently doing. The response could be a placid rebuff, anger or possibly some serious internal questioning, “Do I want to spend the rest of my life (fill in the blank).”

It is the second half of that question that drives home a powerful consideration, “Do I want to change the world.”

Well, that may sound better than sitting around doing whatever it is your doing now.

It’s fairly obvious the question asked by Steve Job was designed to instill a measure of discontent with the promise of something better. Job wanted to hire Sculley so if discontent was a solid marketing tool then he used it to great effect.

The point is most of us want to live a life with purpose. We want to be able to look back on our life and see some bit of the world that was changed because we spent time on the big blue ball. That’s what makes this question so powerful whether the question is asked because you want to start your own business or because you want to develop a solid team of like-minded professionals.

While some might argue that this approach is simply relying on discontent to motivate an individual to work for you there is a flipside to this controversial coin. If your business is a good match for the potential employee and if you have done your homework in recruiting you may be able to ask a question that offers them the opportunity to view their present job in light of the passions they have. If the job they currently hold is simply a job and you offer a more team oriented approach to business then this approach to recruiting may make sense for you – and the prospective employee.

This really leaves just one question for each of us to consider – if you were offered the opportunity to change the world, would you?

Scott Lindsay is a web developer and entrepreneur. He is the founder of HighPowerSites and many other web projects.

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Job Discontent Misery Has Plenty Of Company

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Survey results published early this year in Inc. magazine revealed that job satisfaction in the United States has reached an all-time high – and the discontent is seemingly on the rise.

According to Conference Board, a private research group in New York, more than 50 percent of respondents from a survey of 5,000 U.S. households said they disliked their current job. During the past two decades, the same survey revealed the number of unhappy employees has surged more than 10 percent.

Figures such as these beg the question: What factors contribute to job dissatisfaction?

One answer, as detailed in a separate study recently released by Spherion Corp. is employers’ perceived efforts in meeting employees’ evolving needs. The Emerging Workforce® Study uncovered a well-defined difference in the factors that drive employee retention, as displayed below.

Drivers of Retention

Employer ViewWorker View

1. Management climate(80%)1. Benefits(78%)

2. Supervisor relationship (80%)2. Financial compensation(75%)

3. Culture & work environment (65%)3. Growth & earning potential (68%)

4. Benefits (61%)4. Management climate(67%)

5. Growth & earning potential (58%)5. Time & flexibility(65%)

6. Training & development (54%)6. Culture & work environment (63%)

7. Financial compensation (49%)7. Supervisor relationship(61%)

8. Time & flexibility (35%)8. Training & development(52%)

Source: Spherion Corp. press release (Oct. 10, 2007): Spherion Study Shows Less Than Half of U.S. Workers Are Satisfied With Their Jobs

Some not-so-surprising statistics revealed in the study included the following:

o Compensation is the second most important retention factor for workers (75 percent say it is an extremely or very important), but only 26 percent are satisfied with their current level of compensation

o 62 percent of workers say they have confidence in making a living outside of the traditional/corporate work structure and becoming a contractor, free agent or contingent worker

However, at least one statistic could be the most surprising of all.

o Three in 10 (31 percent) of workers plan to look for a new job in the next year.

With only 31 percent of workers planning new employment and more than half dissatisfied with their jobs, what about the remaining 20 percent or so?

Here is one observation:

Far too often, people have a tendency to complain about a situation without making an effort to create a solution. Entrepreneurs are notorious for questioning the logic of unhappy employees stuck in the 9-to-5 rut for one simple reason: There are plenty of opportunities to create the job you love. All it takes, many argue, is a little courage to break out of your comfort zone.

For entrepreneurs, problems are often viewed as opportunities because the solution is the key to generating income – and, often, plenty of it.

If the people planning to stick with current employers (about 20 percent of the population, according to the study) gave more thought to a solution for their setback, their daily jobs would offer fewer problems and plenty of profit.

Tom Shurt is a freelance writer and journalist. Discover more articles, ideas and solutions for eliminating job dissatisfaction at [http://www.didyousmellthat.com]