When you have nothing to do, learn something new!

I literally sat there not knowing what to do. All of my "tasks" for the day were complete. I had no calls for another 90 minutes. So I walked. And it was HOT. At the start of the walk it was 98 degrees and by the time I was done it was 103. I did not take a second walk today. It was just too toasty.

So I filled my day with development opportunities. I started watching a Udemy course regarding the science of motivation. These are the things I do when I have nothing to do. I try to learn so that I can bring something new or different to my team.

I also was working really hard not to create more work for the team. See, it starts out with a little free time. Then I get a great idea, start doing it, and then have to figure out how to delegate to my team so its sustainable in the future. With less than 18 months left doing our job, I am trying to be cognizant and avoid overloading and overextending everyone. I want them to stay as long as possible after all!

Slacking Off At Work

Even when I try to slack off, I just can't. 

I am not trying to brag here. I came to work with the intention to indulge in some mind expanding reading, I am trying to revisit an old ethnic studies book that is more than relevant at this current time, and it sat on my desk all day teasing me.

By 10 am I had completed all of my ticky tack tasks. I could, without failing in my job duties, kick up my feet, read, and respond to any emergencies. Did it happen? No. Instead I decided to dive into my team's current workload and check to see if they were doing what they were supposed to. Next I wrote up 3 more mid year evaluations that I will deliver next week. Then I decided to prep assignments for the rest of the month. I went on two walk breaks with a co-worker I sat through 2 mid year deliveries as an observer, provided feedback, and support during a corrective action conversation. And you would think, since I finished all of my "work" at 10 am that if anything I would leave promptly to go get my kids, but you would be wrong. I ended up staying almost 20 minutes late talking to a boss person about something that needs to be accomplished next week. 

This is the story of my life. Even when I'm lazy and trying to not work, stuff gets done. 

Oh and don't forget the fight I launched with our HR department and how I helped one of my managers get approval to fire someone for fraud. Technically HR is reviewing "if" we can fire the employee, even though we have proven fraud and we just completed annual fraud training in which the company says it has zero tolerance for fraud. If they don't give me the approval, there are going to be issues. 

There is something about how I was raised and those early jobs I held that really instilled this work ethic. I look around and question why everyone else isn't like this. If you know, tell me, because I can't comprehend getting paid to do nothing if there is a chance something could be done. 

Completely Unremarkable

Not all days are remarkable.

Have you ever been to or driven past a dairy farm? Rows and rows of cows, lined up in rows. That's how I see cubicle life. Every cow or person in it's place, producing to maximum capacity, if the output isn't good, they are quickly replaced.

Today was another day on a dairy farm. I did my tasks, I completed my duties, but I didn't do much more than that. Everyone is burned out. It's the summer time blues mixed in with impending doom of the closure of our business.

Everyone wants out, or wants to survive to the end, but nobody is really enthused to get work done. I'm not feeling much better, but it is my job to inspire others and model the appropriate behaviors, so work I did.

Today, Wednesday, was my Monday, and it feels like the company was on vacation. It was quiet to say the least. We'll see if there is a change tomorrow, I am not betting on it.

Mysogeny Is Alive!

So, the position I hold at my company isn't very high, but I don't let that stop me from keeping people above and below me in check.  Today, I put a call together because one of my senior leaders thought he was being asked to check my team's work, when really, we just send it to him so he has a heads up and can make sure we don't go off the rails.

We don't go off the rails. We are ridiculously knowledgeable. He's been in the business 3 weeks, his staff, maybe 6 months, me and my team? Oh the least experienced 5 years and the most 10+. We know our stuff.

So I pull the call together to straighten him out and he starts fishing for compliments. I joke around with a ton of people all day so I play along, and then he says, "oh you say that to all the boys" to which I reply, without a hitch in my getup, "and the girls too."

But he kind of went to a place he shouldn't have. He preceded to say I was going to meet with the other newbie, to which I said, nope, he already knows what we do and how good we are, I don't have to.

Am I a little cocky? Maybe. But should a senior leader say to a group of women, ranging from Vice Presidents to Assistance Vice Presidents, "oh you say that to all of the boys."

Maybe it wasn't the most egregious misstep ever made, but I ended that call feeling yucky. That's not the way to end the week before a vacation, but what can you do.

Maybe report, maybe not. We'll see.

To the principal's office?

I'm fairly certain it's schools' fault that I'm conditioned to think I did something wrong whenever someone senior tells me they want to talk to me. Or maybe it happened at work, because, let's face it, if you are getting the job done, do they ever come out of no where and say, let's talk!

It happened today. One of the people on the leadership team that I work with asked if I could go to his office. What did I do, or, knowing this particularly leader, what was he about to do that would make my life difficult.

Turns out, there is a promotional opportunity he thought I should consider. This is the second time it's become available. The first time I declined it and someone else stepped in, but now they have moved on and it's up again, and the powers that be think I know my stuff. They aren't wrong, I do know stuff.

So I didn't get in trouble, and people are really trying to do nice things for me. I mean, the job would be eliminated in 18 months, and the job I'm in now, might not be. Do I chance the promotion for something secure? Do I go for immediate satisfaction with increased risk, or lower risk with less satisfaction? I'm usually pretty cautious at weighing the odds and making the right choice, but I don't know here.

But isn't it nice they thought of me? And for an extra added ego boost, the boss man messaged me again today to tell me that in the staff meeting people had great things to say about me and that I was in the top 5% in the company for using our new rewards program. Pretty stinking amazing since I am also one of the most critical bosses with the highest standard around, or at least that's what the team says.