You Are But a Mere Beneficiary

Let's talk about work.

But first, I talk about this sort of thing often for a couple of reasons. To explain a little bit further where I am coming from when I write to you about these kinds of things as well as to offer up perhaps a different perspective on money, work-life balance, and certain freedoms understood better when there is money in the bank.

Every article on these topics is really but yet another part of an ongoing series that has been broken down into individual parts that are easier to read and digest.

But they are that all tied together of course.

What I don't want to suggest in any of these discussions is that I have some sort of animosity towards my employer, or any employer. Nor should you. I have spoken often about the employee-employer relationship being a mutual one. Not a one-sided one.

It is having the employee understand the employer and the employer understand the employee. When that happens, things come into perspective on both sides quite a bit better. Things make more sense.

Like wages. They are often one thing that gets terribly misunderstood, more so by the employee. I say, "Hey, before you go and ask for more money, read the company's balance sheet and see if your request is actually reasonable. Don't just assume."

And for Heaven's sake, don't just always assume that the place you work for is hell-bent on screwing you over at every turn. It is usually not their aim. Trust me. In fact, and this is just me being honest; most of the time it is the worker hell-bent on screwing over the employer.

I know that sounds harsh and maybe even a little bit unfair. But it's more true than you think.

With all of that aside and said, there is something that many employers miss (so we get to fairly beat up on them a bit now) when it comes to employees. And that is, why the workers are there in the first place working for them.

It's to make a living. It is not to make their employer rich necessarily or line their pockets.

Although, there is a benefit to that for the employee, of course. The richer their boss is the more money the worker potentially makes and the more solid their jobs are.

At the end of the day what I want to say to any employer goes something like this.

I want to work hard for you so that my job remains strong, and I can continue to receive due compensation for it. I want to do what I can to make sure that what I contribute grows the company so that I can grow along with it. I want to do good work to ensure the quality of the product I produce is good so that customers keep coming back for more.

In other words, the "I" in all of these statements are key. What a person goes to work for is to make a better life for himself. To provide better for his family and their needs, wants and desires. To make way for his advancement and his opportunity for better pay and benefits. To provide for his future and financial security.

All of the efforts the employee makes on his end is but a mere effort to ensure his own interests are satisfied. The company itself and the owners of it are but a mere beneficiary of the worker's personal interests.

To put it another way, and I have talked about this before as well, an employee-employer relationship is a partnership of sorts. And as I said earlier here, it cannot be a one-sided proposition.

If you, as the company, want the benefit of my hard work to pay off for you, you have to be expected to understand my needs as well as you expect me to understand yours. We are either in the whole thing together, or it doesn't work for either side.

The company will make less money and the worker will have a job that is potentially less secure. Because a company that does not understand the relationship they have with their employees will have a harder time motivating them to do the work that is necessary to keep the wheels well-oiled and turning and keep the company in a good position to maximize its profits.

For any company, it is not enough to simply tell employees, "Be thankful you have a job." There are things any company needs to do to invest in the people that make everything go.

I said invest, and I think that is an important word. Because there are a lot of businesses that consider labor something that goes on the expense side of the ledger. And, according to accounting rules, it is the proper place to put those costs. But it should not be the attitude of the employer.

The people who produce the product are as important as the building and machines and whatever else brings the product to market.

A company that fails to recognize this does so at their own peril. Just like an employee who fails to understand his employer does so at his own peril. Again, it is not a one-sided thing in any circumstance.

Flipping this all around a bit, it is also important for an employee to know that he is also a beneficiary of the company's success. What he does or does not do impacts the benefit, good or bad. And if all the stars are aligned properly and everyone is viewing each other fairly and with the right perspective and the right understanding?

Everyone succeeds.

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