Do you have co-workers that weigh you and others down by not completing their share of the workload? I know we all have days when we move a bit slower, but what I am talking about is the co-worker that is like this on a regular basis. For example they wait for someone else to answer the phone first so they do not have to. Or they see things that need to be done around the office, like trash that needs to be emptied or filing that is sitting there, but just leave it for someone else to do. Because these employees do not step up to the plate and be an active, engaged player of your office team they are weighing the rest of the team down by leaving added things for them to do. They may think because no one has said anything to them that must mean their behavior is acceptable, but it really is not and definitely needs to be addressed.
Early in my career as an office manager we had hired someone who we soon found out was a “boat anchor,” she weighed us down with her unfinished work on a daily basis. At first I thought it was because there was so much work to do and I was so busy that I was not really watching her closely to see what exactly she was accomplishing each day. It wasn’t until my boss mentioned to me that I could do her job twice as fast that I realized that she was just pacing herself and collecting her paycheck while I was picking up the slack.
When working with a “boat anchor” your office team cannot move forward the way they need to because of the extra weight that they are having to pull and they will eventually tire out from trying. There are three steps for raising your anchor, (1) Write specific task issues that are not being done and ask that they be done, set the expectations. (2) Address the fact that on one likes to pick up the slack. All team players need to equally do their part. (3) Monitor progress and give feed back on improvement, this is a very important step as the boat anchor will realize that you mean business and are paying attention to what they are and are not doing. By letting employees know that you are monitoring their work progress you should have smoother seas for sailing ahead of you.
“The sooner we learn to be jointly responsible, the easier the sailing will be” ~Ella Maillart
2/2013
Comments