Why I Will Not Pursue a Management Role
In the course of my professional journey, I have explored a variety of organizations, gaining insights into the intricacies of the workforce at a grassroots level. This hands-on experience has allowed me to become intimately familiar with the working class, making me apprehensive about taking on the responsibility of managing them.
My hesitance arises from witnessing how the worker class can sometimes exhibit sloppiness and wastefulness, often proving to be less appreciative than circumstances warrant. The following examples illustrate my concerns:
- Misusing Office Resources: In the days of landline phones, I’ve observed colleagues shamelessly using office lines for personal calls, often for extended periods, without consideration for their coworkers.
- Poor Time Management: Many employees would needlessly procrastinate, leaving work pending for days, only to later attribute their backlog to the company’s undue pressure. This kind of behavior fosters bitterness among punctual and dedicated colleagues, who are eventually forced to work overtime to meet deadlines.
- Deaf Ears to Management Training: Management invests significant effort into motivating and inspiring employees to enhance productivity. However, it often appears that a substantial portion of the workforce is more concerned with discussing the menu items during such training sessions, even criticizing the quality of food served. They dismiss motivational talks as a waste of time, arguing that “you cannot teach new tricks to old dogs.”
- Promoting Personal Business: In the IT industry, it’s not uncommon to find employees engaged in running their businesses concurrently with their employment. These individuals may prioritize their personal ventures during office hours, often directing their remote teams from the workplace. Their commitment to office work appears to wane as they channel their energy into personal endeavors.
Given my nature, which tends towards kindness and diplomacy in an era where such traits can be viewed as weaknesses, I believe I may not be cut out to be a good manager. Conniving and opportunistic employees are skilled at adapting their behavior according to their managers. When confronted with a kind and polite boss, they may exploit the situation by raising various personal and professional issues that can only be addressed during office hours. Strangely, these same individuals can perform quite effectively under the rigorous pressure exerted by a strict and authoritarian manager.
In conclusion, there are people who seem impervious to kindness, compassion, and politeness. These individuals require a stern taskmaster to keep them focused, as they might otherwise dissipate their time and energy on unproductive pursuits. Unfortunately, being a hard taskmaster is not within my nature, making management roles an ill-suited prospect for me.