I recently read this quote in a WSJ article..."A good employee or a good sales associate might be worth five or 10 times an average one.". It's a very good article about the value of service...definitely worth the read. But, it's this quote that really garnered my attention. I think a great employee is worth far more than five or ten times that of an average associate...probably a hundred times more, maybe higher. Here's just part of my basis...based on my short twenty-two years in the biz:
Great Employees
- don't need to be managed
- don't break important rules...and break the less important ones for the right reasons
- think and create
- are accountable and responsible
- have passion
- don't need to be motivated by you...they're self-propelled
- make you look good
- are trustworthy
- have fun
- think first about the team, then of themselves
- seem to get it that the customer and their co-workers are more important than they are
- leave when they know the time is right...for a better experience
- they smile a lot...and get others to do the same
They play to win
Average Employees
- spend an inordinately long time in training
- work for pay, not for the experience or the ride on the bus
- break rules for selfish reasons
- hang-on to the job because it's owed to them
- blame everyone else for things that go wrong, especially the customer
- need constant motivation and incentive to do a good job
- are afraid to fail
- do just enough to get by
- take risks to benfit only themselves
- are late a lot
- often seem troubled about things
- they frown alot...and get others to do the same
They play not to lose
You've noticed that my list is based on personality, traits and character...not on job skills. My list is based on raw talent...what a person comes equipped with before you get your hands on them. Raw talent is based on how people see themselves and what they want to accomplish in life...it's the seed for passion and remarkability. And, unfortunately, it can be the foundation for average. Your job is to sniff out what's underneath...before they get on board.
Average people need jobs. Extraordinary people want them.
Mine is just a partial list. I would love to see yours. I'll be spending more time on this subject in an upcoming podcast...and will be happy to highlight your add-ons.