Dilbert - the Lighter Side of Cubicle Nation
I’m excited for my pre-ordered copy of the new Escape From Cubicle Nation book to arrive this month. The author, Pam Slim, is an insightful blogger and coach who helps people figure out the purpose of their lives and take steps toward career freedom. My friend Annie is a poster child for Pam’s message.
Toxic Workplaces
Annie’s work environment is challenging, to say the least. The windowless office is honeycombed with gray dividers. Neon lights glare overhead. Large numbers of employees suffer migraines, which Annie suspects is due to a mix of harsh lighting and stress.
The head honchos are workaholics who live at the office nights and weekends. They don’t have families or social lives to speak of. They don’t eat right or take care of themselves. And they expect their underlings to follow suit. Thus, everyone who works with Annie is stressed and unhealthy.
The organization is plagued by customer service problems, as there is a cavernous communication gap between the administrators who make decisions and those who deliver services on the front lines. The programs in place don’t work nearly as effectively as they could. Systems at Annie’s company seem to exist for their own sake, or for the sake of those in authority, rather than for ordinary employees or the customers they serve. Annie is struggling to find a healthier workplace, but in our region in this tough economic environment new openings are few and far between and the competition is stiff.
Bottom Line Marketing - the Happiest Workplace on Earth
Annie was baffled when I told her about my work environment at Bottom Line Marketing. We are a small business with just five employees. My boss Chris Brooks has created the ultimate people-centered workplace.
Our office is in the basement of Brooks’ house. He has four dogs who hang out with us (so perhaps this is really a dog-centered workplace?) and when my own dog Lucy was just a puppy I would often bring her to work with me on Fridays to play with the pack.
Our schedules are flexible, so if we need to run to the doctor or meet a significant other for lunch nobody blinks an eye. Employees are trusted to get their work done. And while we do work crazy-hard sometimes to meet a deadline, the overall mood is calm, creative, friendly, and relaxed.
When I had my first child, I was allowed to move to a part-time schedule and arrange my hours in whatever way was best for me and my family. I work four mornings a week, Monday through Thursday, so afternoons and Fridays I get to be home with my son. I put in some hours evenings and weekends as needed, but again, it’s flexible.
The staff at Bottom Line are like family. We always say, “Good morning” and ask about each others’ weekends. We exchange gifts at Christmas, and Brooks has been known to be incredibly generous toward us employees. In the short UP (Upper Peninsula of Michigan) summers, he grills lunch for us on the back deck. My co-worker Bekki delivers a cup of freshly-brewed coffee to my desk every morning, with skim milk and Splenda added just the way I like it. We laugh a lot. We help each other out. We cry together when life is hard. Bottom Line isn’t perfect, but it’s a great place to work.
I wish everybody in the world could work in a people-centered workplace like mine. And honestly, I wish I could find another job that would allow me to move up that next-step on the career ladder but not require me to give up the high quality work life I enjoy at Bottom Line.
Freedom of Unrestricted Sitting
I have a room in the office to myself. It includes a lovely gas fireplace, perfect for a heat-seeking missile like me who is currently writing this blog post seated on the heating vent in my dining room. This morning at the office I printed off several pages of research and curled up on the floor by my fireplace to read and take notes. I did feel awkward when the accountant passed through and I was sprawled there like a mermaid, but I’m willing to trade a little dignity for comfort.
In my teacher education program in college we read articles by child development theorists who said children and adolescents should be allowed to read in any position they liked in the classroom - curled up in a corner, on the floor, in a comfy armchair, etc. - to encourage them to engage with their work. I think this theory would be just as beneficial applied to adults, though I suspect it doesn’t happen much outside of progressive start-ups or free agents who work from home. Open seating policies are perhaps not for everyone, everyday. But for those of us who think better while comfy, it’s a blessing to be allowed to work this way.
Freedom From Inhuman Lighting
My father-in-law is a high school math teacher. He read a study that found kids are calmer and learn better when they are not subjected to harsh flourescent lighting. So Bob went to thrift shops and acquired a collection of floor lamps that he placed around the classroom, creating a more homey, calming environment. The students loved the change, and Bob noticed a marked difference in the behavior and attentiveness of his students.
But this year, a new administrator visited his classroom and decided she didn’t like his lighting. Bob told her about his research. She didn’t care. It wasn’t the way things were done. Ms. Principal probably deemed it a fire hazard or some other nonsense. So Bob received a nasty letter advising him he had better remove his lamps from his classroom. He didn’t, so the custodians hauled them out over Christmas break.
How many people in our schools and workplaces are subjected to psychologically hazardous environments because our bureaucratic systems are run by toadies, afraid of change and committed above all to making sure things are done their way? The welfare of the people learning and working under their care is far down the list of priorities, if they think of it at all.
Customer Service is the New Marketing
Today I went shopping at a big box store to buy a wireless router for my new MacBook. (Of course, I need this so I can take my laptop anywhere in the house and get comfy next to a heat source.) Any time I have to shop in the electronics aisle, I am utterly lost. There are too many choices, and not enough information. The gadget-makers and the store don’t do a very good job of giving customers the clear product knowledge they need to make a good buying decision. I don’t know which device goes with my computer (which charger goes with my phone, which ink cartridge goes with my printer) so I usually don’t stand there long before seeking the help of a store employee.
Unfortunately, the lady assigned to help me today knew less about the product than I did. She was nice, but couldn’t do much more than look dumbly over my shoulder while I read the fine print on the package and wondered aloud what it meant. She did point out the generous return policy if it turned out I had chosen unwisely.
Granted, big box stores typically differentiate themselves on price. Customer service? Not so much. The sad thing is that I’ve shopped at countless small businesses who don’t seem to understand that because they typically can’t compete with the big boys on price and selection, their primary point of differentiation should be excellent customer service. They fail to see things from their customer’s point of view. To provide adequate buying information, well-designed signage, or staff who know enough (or care enough) to be helpful.
We have entered an age where consumers have countless options for where to buy products. Social networks and customer rating sites like Yelp allow stories of bad (or good) customer service to spread like wildfire. People don’t care any more what companies say about their products. They care what they do for their customers. Customer service is about companies developing people-centered systems (including policies toward their employees). Customer service is the new marketing.
Freedom to Rest
My pal Jesus gets it. As far as I know he and God were the co-founders of the people-centered system. When God created the world, he rested on the Seventh day, and decided it would be good for mankind to take a day of rest, too. So he wrote it into his 10 Commandments. And all the hardworking people of the world who followed God’s law were allowed a day of rest.
But of course, people who fancy themselves in charge of things have a knack for coming up with new rules that make life harder for people. The Pharisees and Saducees, the church authorities of Jesus’ day, went around making up their own lists of things people could not do on the Sabbath. It got pretty ridiculous. They called Jesus out for healing people on the Sabbath because it was too much like working. They didn’t like his disciples picking grain on the Sabbath when they were hungry. So Jesus reminded them of the true purpose of the Sabbath. “The Sabbath was made for man, not man for the Sabbath.” The system wasn’t what was important. The PEOPLE were what was important.
Taking a Sabbath is a fantastic, people-centered idea that isn’t practiced much these days. Imagine how much better the world would be if everyone took a day of rest. True rest. No blackberry. No checking your work email. No homework. Peace. Quiet. Reflection. Time with loved ones. A walk in nature. Prayer. Ah, I feel more relaxed just thinking about it.
Dan Pink talks about Sabbaths in his book A Whole New Mind when discussing applications of the 6th sense practiced by right-brained thinkers - meaning. In his portfoliio for the chapter (page 239 in my book) he suggests readers “Take a Sabbath.”
“Select one day a week and remove yourself from the maw. Stop working. Don’t answer your email. Ignore your voice mail. Turn off your mobile phone. Most Western religions have established a Sabbath - the seventh day of the week - as a time of peace, reflection, and prayer. Whatever your faith, consider experimenting with this practice. (And it need not be religious at all. Secular Sabbaths can be equally re-energizing.) For guidance, check out Wayne Muller’s book, Sabbath: Finding Rest, Renewal, and Delight in our Busy Lives.”
Maybe it’s impossible for you to change the unfriendly environment at your own workplace. Maybe it’s also impossible for you to leave and find a different job. But you can still give yourself a day of rest this weekend, and take advantage of a people-friendly system that has been around since the beginning of time.
