There is a lot of discussion on finding work in what you love doing, is it a good thing or not?
I have had the privilege of working with Jane Ron and John (names changed) all had a passion and it was not what they were doing as a job.
John was a cloud specialist and well regarded by his peers and customers. Every hour outside work was spent filming and editing music videos. When I had my 1;1 s I would ask him how the videos were going and his eyes would light up. One day I said to him, I don’t want to lose you, but I sense you are not fulfilled by your role. John said I would love to make the filming and editing full time, but I am scared of giving up my job. I said what if you could work 3-4 days a week and spend a day on your filming. John was over the moon, this would be perfect, I can see if this works out for me, whilst working in my role. Within a month John was working 1-2 days a week on his filming business and 6 months late he was full time, doing what he loved.
As a leader there are many lessons here:
- helping people realise their dreams is leadership
- this is a true test of Trust between you and your team member, especially if it is not aligned to what they are doing today
- other employees are inspired by the leadership as it is focused at the heart of any business the people
- transitioning is easier to manage than someone resigning, you can plan and ensure the transition is seamless.
A few years later Jane worked in one of the sales teams I led and was a Environmentalist to the core. She was in a sales role and successful, but it was not wanted she really wanted to be doing. In a mentoring session I asked her to bring some of her passions to the role IE getting everyone on board with recyclable coffee cups. She did many side projects but it was not enough to change how she felt. I encouraged to look at a number of organisations where her passion would be fulfilled and introduced her to people I knew in the field. She finally landed her dream job. I lost a great sales person, but helped someone pursue their passion. When I read Jane’s post on linked I am so proud of what she achieved and feel good that I was able to assist her on the journey.
Around the same time Ron one of the Sales managers told me he had been doing sales management for over a decade and was looking to the future where he wanted a operational role in the company. I connected Ron with a mentor in Operations, where I thought they would be an excellent fit in terms of personality and temperaments. A year later Ron secured the role he wanted in operations. During that time we worked through Ron’s replacement. A 12 month run way is plenty of time to ensure the successor is ready.
Help your team realise their dreams
Angela Lovegrove 