Don’t mind your own business

Many of us in the workplace today were taught, from an early age, to ‘mind your own business’. I am reminded any time I am around children, frankly, how many times they ask the question ‘why’, with each successive response from the adult eliciting another ‘why’.  In my experience, this toing and froing typically ends in one of 2 responses – ‘stop asking why’, or ‘because I said so’.  As children, curiosity might have led us to ask penetrating questions that were purposefully valid for our development, but unfortunately the responses we were conditioned to receive were ‘mind your own business’. It was as if those questions were considered rude or just not appropriate. The upshot was we began to hold our tongue. So, are we worse off because of this?

Possibly scarred by this kind of experience, many employees still ‘hold their tongues’ in the workplace. They’ve learned a behavior that might not be that great as a consequence… They simply accept the status quo. They don’t ask ‘why are things done this way’? They don’t question the received wisdom.  In the worst cases, they don’t even bother paying attention anymore.

My view is that sometimes we shouldn’t mind our own business. Individuals should be encouraged to ask and truly understand ‘why?’. They should feel able to challenge the current practice, protocols or behavior without feeling they will be criticised for it. They may understand ‘what’ they’re supposed to do and ‘how’ they’re supposed to do it, but maybe ‘why’ they should do it simply hasn’t been explained to them!?  Asking questions can give them a clearer perspective on their own purpose at work and ultimately will help them understand what is needed, engage and do a better job.

For those who have worked most closely with me, they know that I will often take an opposing view (sometimes even to my own thinking) just to ensure that challenge is being encouraged in the workplace.  I can even recall a social experiment that I ran years ago in a work setting, where I secretly asked an influential member of the team to only use the word ‘why’ in a particular meeting.  What happened was amazing, every time a point or decision was raised, an influential role model said ‘why’ and what ensued was a more interesting debate and, dare I say, outcome of the meeting.

Are people in your organization wearing blinkers? Do they avoid speaking up? If so, they’re missing out - and so is your business… Performance improvements can be sparked by questions from every level of staff and understanding ‘why’ can help everyone do a better job.  It also means employees have to have the courage to ask ‘why’ and be nurtured by a culture that accepts that not minding your own business brings diversity of thinking and input, greater buy-in to the eventual direction, and ultimately greater understanding and connectivity of individuals to the business.

Simon didn’t say… Are you giving permission to perform?

(I apologise for the gap in blog posts, I’ve just enjoyed some well-earned leave.)

Remember playing ‘Simon Says’ as a child? Sometimes fun and sometimes exasperating!? Not knowing if you have permission can be a bit like that…

It’s usually seen as a good thing to invest in customer service training. But actually you’re wasting your money if you don’t give employees permission to use their skills and to exercise their own judgment to do what’s right for customers.

I endured an example of this recently when my mobile phone died prior to the end of my contract. While I must admit I was enjoying the momentary respite from our connected world, I was also being prompted daily by my mother that a new phone was needed as she could no longer ‘facetime’ me or play ‘Words with Friends’.

A new mobile phone – how hard could it be?

Arriving at the flagship London store of my mobile provider, I was greeted promptly and courteously by a sales associate, who had clearly received the necessary technical training -- quickly spouting off details of the various phones, plans, and options. Upgrading 60 days early due to a maintenance issue, however, was not a straightforward situation, and as became obvious during a highly frustrating experience, his training fell down in one key area: he didn’t have ‘permission’ from his company to use his initiative.

While I won’t bore you with the finer details, the sales associate’s computer system was set up to penalize folks wishing to upgrade early, not taking into account other reasons why a client might find themselves in this situation. It was painfully clear to the associate (and his manager) that an insignificant fee, that they weren’t allowed to waive, was actually incentivising me to take my business elsewhere. In short, I left on a principle, and they lost a long-term client, simply because they had no permission.

I quickly found another provider.  Same phones and same phone plans – but they had permission, working creatively to ensure that the penalties being assessed by my old provider were negated in the new sale.

Even though renewing my phone contract took longer than it did to buy my car (seriously!), this experience taught me that you can’t create a customer service mentality if you don’t give people permission to perform. So, don’t make your team feel like they are playing ‘Simon Says’, give them permission to do a great job!

How would permission change things in your organization?  Do you have permission to even raise the topic of permission?  Challenge yourself and challenge others if this is an issue in your organization.

P.S.  I am happy with my new phone and service provider, but was particularly thrilled when calling back to officially cancel the old cell plan only to be greeted with the standard automated response “you are now eligible for an upgrade to your mobile phone…”  It turns out the computer didn’t have the permission either – it was in the phone all the time.