Insights

#251: Focus on the Demands of the Job Not on the Demands for the Job

Recently, I saw an article with the headline “Great resignation turning into the great remorse.” Or words to that effect.

If you search on that phrase, you will find many similar sounding articles and even a few videos.

And now I have added mine to the mess, I mean mix. (Mine has the benefit of being short. Very short.)


Once upon a time, your job was not about you. You just happened to be the one doing it at the time. The focus was on the output required.

Along came the “Me Generation” demanding that there be some “MEeaning” to the job. Unless I found me in the meaning, I would underperform because I would be under motivated. And so the focus shifted from the output required to what it would take to get me to put in the input needed to get the output required. (I hope you are motivated to read that again.)

Unsurprisingly, the “Me Generation” spawned the “Selfie Generation”. Selfie is visual-shorthand for selfish. Will the flash, I mean focus, now fall on the job? Or on the meaning? Or on the person taking the selfie doing the job?

To make fill-in-the-blank great again, we must focus on the demands of the job and not give in to the demands for the job.


Welcome to my side of the nonsense divide.