Sweeping Up Worms - Career Article

By:Nan S. Russell

With the opening of a new venture and numerous reporters arriving in an hour, it felt like one of those "chickens with heads off" days. We were close, but not ready. So like locusts to a wheat field, a swarm of people were devouring the last minute details. Then, it rained. With rain, came worms, hundreds washing onto the entrance sidewalk. When I returned to the area, I found a manager, several department supervisors and a director outside with brooms, sweeping up worms. No one asked them to sweep worms. But, with guests arriving shortly and no one else available, they found brooms and started sweeping.
They didn't get hung up over titles or roles. Instead, they did what needed to be done at the time. Their actions were what I call, ego-detached. Being ego-detached frees you to do what needs to be done because it's not about you; it's about something bigger than you. It's an attitude of contribution. How can I best serve today? How can I help? What can I contribute? Being ego-detached is taking the you (your ego) out of the picture. It's looking at the best result, not necessarily the result that's best for you.
But here's the twist. Being ego detached is not being ego-less. I heard Donald Trump talking about egos with Larry King on CNN recently. He commented that all the successful people he knew had big egos, defining ego as confidence or self-esteem. Certainly believing in yourself and having high self-esteem are qualities to help grow personal success. I'm not suggesting you shed either. Quite the opposite. You need plenty of confidence and self-esteem in order to be ego-detached.
I learned that lesson as a senior manager involved in a start-up company. One afternoon, the president saw me stapling information sheets in a conference room. After saying good-bye to his guest he came back and asked, "Nan, what are you doing?" After explaining why meeting a FedEx pickup was critical to an important corporate initiative and the number of people working to meet it, he offered to help. People who are ego-detached recognize that the best use of their time and talent can vary in the moment.
I used to marvel at colleagues of mine, other Vice Presidents, who delayed getting something to their boss because their executive assistant was gone for the day and it needed copying. I'm not talking about the stuff that can and should wait. It's those late night meetings when the boss says he'd like to review something that night and he needs a copy. Ego-detached people go to the copier, copy it and walk the copy back to their boss, regardless of title. It's how best they can serve at the moment.
If you want to be winning at working, don't let your ego dictate your actions, let the situation. Don't be afraid to sweep up worms from time to time. And don't be afraid to serve. As Tolstoy put it, "The vocation of every man and woman is to serve other people." That's ego-detached.
(c) 2004 Nan S. Russell. All rights reserved.

About the Author

Sign up to receive Nan's free biweekly eColumn at www.winningatworking.com. Nan Russell has spent over twenty years in management, most recently with QVC as a Vice President. Currently working on her first book, Nan is a writer, columnist, small business owner, and instructor.

Digg del.icio.us Blink Stumble Spurl Reddit Netscape Furl

Article Source: http://www.articles2k.com

Top Career Articles
1). Learn How To Draw Realistic Faces By : Adam Reeder Drawing a face isn’t as hard as it looks. To begin, you start with an egg shaped oval. Draw a line down the center of this egg. This line will giv
2). Pharmacist Resume Samples Will Help You Create An Unmistakable Resume! By : Robert Marcus Pharmacist resumes must have information of your experience relevant to the position in a quick and clear format. Employers are interested in a highly qualified person and customer friendly attitude. Apart from highlighting your qualifications, contact information, experience etc, the following points will provide a hint on how to prepare the resume for a Pharmacist position.
3). How To Write The Best Teacher Resume You Can By : Laura Adams It should come as no surprise that there is a currently a shortage of teachers in the United States. This unfortunate trend has been seen for well over a decade. To compound the issue, recent labor studies have predicted that teaching positions will likely continue to grow faster than the national average for the next several years due to recent government regulations to reduce class size and increase educational accountability.
4). Skilled Workers Needed By Auto Industry By : David Sanders An auto dealership job may put you on the road to a rewarding career-particularly if you're a veteran. Military veterans have the skills and work ethic needed for many careers. A new study by Harris Interactive estimates there are more than 100,000 career jobs currently available at auto dealerships across the country. The report also found that auto dealers hired more than 15,000 veterans since January 2004.
5). Reflections on "How to Do what you Love" by Paul Graham through Meditation. By : Swami Satchidanand I was reading "How to Do what you Love" by Paul Graham last night and because I loved it so much I decided to write a little more of me into it.
6). Keys To Getting The Law Enforcement Job You Want By : Don Cirillo These days, when uncertain economic times are putting many careers in doubt, an increasing number of people are looking to work in law enforcement. And there are very good reasons for this. As many industries have shrunk, North American communities have steadily increased their budgets for law enforcement. Police officers now enjoy better pay and often outstanding benefits.
7). Nursing facts that everyone should know By : Suzanne Verita Most people say it is a career about caring. Others say it is a job about professional administration of medications and cure to patients. Some say it is the duty to work out predicaments by using critical thinking skills. In whatever way you want to call it, nursing is, indeed, a conglomeration of all these beliefs and the faculty of many other skills.
8). The Female Firefighter By : Barney Garcia Firefighting is no longer just the domain of the male. Just like every other career, trade, or profession women have made inroads into this traditionally male territory.
9). How To Achieve A Balanced And Healthy Lifestyle In Retirement By : Cynthia Barnett Now that you’ve retired, you have entered an entirely new phase of life, a life filled with new challenges, adventure and hopefully one that brings you complete and total satisfaction. However, if you’re like most people, change isn’t always easy and is sometimes stressful. This stress is completely normal but may be compounded if you don’t learn how to balance all the demands on your time.
10). Career - Test Your Negotiation Skills By : CD Mohatta Negotiation is part of every professional’s life. To negotiate, means to arrive at an understanding with another person, so that both of you are satisfied with the results. Do you know what is your skill in negotiation? If not, why not test and find out because most of our interactions demand negotiation. You are negotiating with your love partner about which place to go for dinner.

New Career Articles
1). Quitting Your Job Can Be A Reality By : Jeff Schuman Thanks to the internet anyone living anywhere can quit their jobs and live their dreams. You just to need get started planning how you are going to do it.
2). Job Hunting On A Shoestring By : David Cassell Tips that you can easily implement to stay in the black during your job search
3). Unemployment Blues: Reframing The Pain By : Virginia Bola In addition to the anger and fear generated by job loss, there is the total emotional devastation of being figuratively thrown on a pile of human debris.
4). Employment Interviewing: Ask For The Job By : Virginia Bola During any interview, it is important to display unabashed enthusiasm for this position, with this company, at this time.
5). The Business Opportunity of a Private Investigator By : Robert Gravener In this article we talk about some of the opportunities that are out there for a Private Investigator and what aspects of this exciting career may be or not be for you.
6). How to Answer Interview Questions: A Guide to Job Seekers By : Dave Poon When seeking for a job, it is important that you are ready when you face your future employer. The most challenging part is the interview.
7). Are You In The Right Job? By : Garry Zancanaro If you become known as a person that can be relied upon to get a job done, who is efficient and productive, has initiative and is prepared to accept challenges, and has a positive attitude to your work and your co-workers, you will be considered a great asset by any well run organisation.
8). Unemployment Blues: Mind Over Mood By : Virginia Bola Unemployment plays havoc with our emotional system. We take a number of hits all at once: loss of occupational identity, economic pressure, family anxiety, and the humiliation of job search.
9). Prolonged Unemployment: Reconnecting With The Labor Market By : Virginia Bola If you have been unemployed for an extended period of time, you know that potential employers are going to look at your long period of unemployment with a jaundiced eye.
10). Your Online Home Internet Business By : james lowe The triumphs and traumas of starting your entrepreneur career on the internet