“You don’t get paid for the hour. You get paid for the value you bring to the hour.” – Jim Rohn
We live in a society where a lot of people get excited about the wrong things. Today I’m thinking about the number of hours we work. I’ve heard a lot of leaders talk about how busy they are, or how much time they spend at the office, or how crazy their schedule is as though those things are something to brag about. As if the measure of what you’re providing to your organization and those it serves is the amount of time you spend providing it.
The reality is that the amount of time is meaningless. What’s worth bragging about is how much value you’re bringing to your organization and those you serve.
Start by asking yourself every day: What is it I’m spending my time doing? Is that really valuable? If it’s not, how can you get rid of it? Either STOP doing it, DELEGATE it to someone else, OUTSOURCE it entirely, or RE-ENGINEER what you’re doing. But don’t just blindly keep doing it. If you do, you’re more or less stealing from your business and your customers.
So then ask yourself another question: What do I do that’s really valuable? If it’s something internally-focused, is it really valuable to your people? I’ve known leaders who do things because they think it benefits those who work for them, only to find out later that what they’re doing has no impact.
Now look outside your organization. Do our customers really value this thing that I’m doing? There are countless businesses out there that spend a lot of time on things customers don’t care about at all. Here’s a simple way to think about it. If the government doesn’t require it, and your customers never, ever mention it, then why are you doing it?
Don’t kid yourself. The vast majority of your customers don’t really care about a lot of your technical knowledge. There are a few simple things they get really excited about, and the rest is just extra cost. So if they don’t care, why should you?
We all have busy lives and busy schedules. What really matters in all that running around is the value we’re bringing to those around us. Why waste time doing stuff that doesn’t bring any value? Clear out the extra garbage and make yourself as valuable as you were meant to be.
