Never Forget That We Are Replaceable
It’s a wonderful feeling when you believe that you are wanted and appreciated. It has this fantasticly motivating effect that makes you want to work harder, more diligent — you can do little to contain your heartfelt enthusiasm. Some businesses and people tend to nurture and reward this support. Other unfortunately prey on this type of enthusiasm. In either case, it can be a very harsh reality check when you realize that you are not as vital or as important or as appreciated as you had come to believe yourself to be. This applies whether you’re dealing with a business, a friendship, or even a marriage.
I recently read about CEO who was planning a gathering for his associates to be held this summer. At the moment, he doesn’t think that he will have the attendance that he expected. When this company first started a few months ago, the enthusiasm of the people behind his efforts was incredible. His associates had come to believe that they have an individual stake in his success which meant their success. Most of them had come to believe that they mattered much more than they had ever experienced. A few months and a few business decisions ago, these people experienced a very harsh reality check with this CEO. Like children who accidentally burned themselves on the stove, they now deal with the company cautiously. Their enthusiasm has diminished, you might even call it a more realistic level for a business relationship. And it’s no ones’ fault. I don’t think that the CEO expected the almost cultlike following that he garnered in the early days of building his company. Perhaps it’s better for all involved that this all happened in the early days of his company’s growth. Down the road, he could have had a mass uprising that would have destroyed his work. For now, the company can ride out this loss-of-faith and continue its growth. For now, any new members coming into the business won’t know any better. Maybe next year, if time really heals wounds, the CEO’s gathering will have the attendance he had expected and with a new army of enthusiastic associates who have forgotten that they are replaceable.
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