Nobody Washes A Rental Car
01.06.2006 | Chris BaileyMy CEO just hit me with this particular bit of wisdom. And he’s right…we tend to put more effort into the things that we own. From my own experience, I’ve never washed a rental car and I’m more invested in the home that I own now than my previous home, which I rented. So, what are the implications of this?
As managers and executives…our employees will commit more fully to a project or task in which they feel they have some kind of ownership. Makes sense, right? Though, how many times do we plan and create projects and then start immediately delegating tasks? To seem benevolent, we might label the exercise as visionary leadership, but it’s just another form of power/control. That’s not to say that it isn’t okay to have a vision; we just have to remember that the best visions are those that incorporate the ideas and passions of our employees.
As employees…okay, say you’re working for the benevolent visionary leader, what then? Some choices include whining about the fact that you have little control over your work; or taking the more challenging (and I won’t lie, dangerous) path of making the task or project your own. Have an idea that deviates from the vision but believe will work? Do some homework and research why your idea will work and how you plan to implement it. Be thorough and dogged in your approach. And, if after making a few efforted pitches and your boss or project manager still doesn’t give them fair consideration, then perhaps it’s time to go someplace where your ideas will be taken fairly and seriously.
And as professionals…when we take ownership of something, there’s always a price to caring for it. If you’re serious about your career, then now is the time to own it. If you’re treating your career and your life like a rented 1984 Ford Escort, maybe it’s time to step up and become the owner of a shiny new Porsche (or if you’re more ecologically-minded, a Toyota Prius). Just make whatever it is fully your own.
8 Responses to “Nobody Washes A Rental Car”
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I like it, thanks for sharing it. It made me think of this one; The soldiers at Normandy didn’t storm the beaches for the combat pay.
Carnival of Lean Leadership
The holidays have been a busy time for all of us, but bloggers kept on posting. Here we go again with some of our favorite lean and leadership posts. If there’s a blog we don’t know about, please let us
I accidentally melted a whole stick of butter on the back seat of a rental car and didn’t clean it up. I truly didn’t feel responsible, mainly because it was a Geo[nardo Di] Metr[i]o.
Leadership and Rental Cars
My buddy Chris Bailey over at The Alchemy of Soulful Work writes today about leadership and how nobody washes a rental car.Quoting Chris: As managers and executives…our employees will commit more fully to a project or task in which they feel they hav…
I love the title Chris. It resonates with all of us who have rented cars. It is such a good reminder of ownership of what we are doing at work and with our careers. Thank you for this post…now if I can just find my keys.
Washing Rental Cars
Chris Bailey gives a great analogy for taking ownership of anything you do, whether at work or home. Basically, no…
Tribeless and Rachel, welcome and thanks for adding to the conversation.
David, every time I rent a car, I remember the scene in Days of Thunder (sorry, bad Tom Cruise movie…who would believe him to be a NASCAR driver?) where they rent a couple of cars only to have a demolition race with them. But then, it adds more to the idea that we’d probably never do something like that to anything we own, even if it is insured.
Chris,
I added this article to the Cohesive Integrity reading list several days ago. Sorry about not posting a cross link sooner. The reading assignment is posted in the left hand column of http://cohesiveintegrity.com and the feed is available at http://feeds.feedburner.com/readingassignment
James Shewmaker