Happy Labor (of love) Day!
Why does a negative connotation often get attached to the word 'labor'? We spend a third of our lives engaged in some form of labor and the majority of us actually enjoy what we do. For us, it's more like Labor (of love) Day.
Gallup polls find that most of us view our jobs as rewarding and we are enthusiastically engaged in what we do making a life and a living. One of the greatest rewards at TalentBlvd.com is the opportunity to spend time networking with highly motivated on-camera and producer talent. Their love for what they do is infectious.
Case in point, if you watch young rising reporter/anchor Lauren Creighton you'll see the ambition, energy, and passion she brings to her role as a multimedia journalist. Her hunger for career growth far exceeds the burden of setting a 2am alarm or standing in the rain or snow for countless hours. The pursuit of her dreams is definitely greater than her desire to sleep in that warm comfortable bed.
For those that are disengaged and unfulfilled in their work, the majority will tell you that the source of dissatisfaction is not the job or their role, it's a toxic culture or poor manager. Think about this for a moment … those that look at their 'labor' as drudgery are not unhappy with WHAT they are doing, they are frustrated with WHO they are doing it with.
Our responsibility as leaders is to provide the environment that the rising stars like Lauren can, and will thrive in. It literally hinges on the first and second level managers in our organizations.
NOTE: That News Director might be responsible for the heroic effort to get a nightly newscast aired but what are we doing to help them be an inspirational and caring leader of people? Remember these are the same people we need to 'rinse and repeat' that same level of heroism night after night? I think we can agree those efforts are leading to exhaustion and burnout for many.
I spend a great deal of my time working with senior executives and CHRO's to develop 'managers' into 'leaders' of high performing organizations. One of the greatest learnings the past 5-6 years has been we are spending considerably too much time focused on the labor or the work and not enough time understanding what fuels passion and performance.
In summary, shout out to the management team at 9 & 10 News in Northern Michigan for fueling the passion in the future leaders and rock stars of the industry like Lauren.
Hope this holiday post finds you celebrating your own Labor (of love) Day!
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