I have heard numerous conversations in the past few years that it is very difficult to expand your work force without encountering numerous “productivity” problems (i.e. “it’s hard to find good help these days”). It’s like you have to sell labor to your workforce. Many people don’t know all the physical, psychological and of course financial benefits of working, so you have to sell it to them and it’s a hard sell. I’m not talking about just going through the motions looking at the clock work but really “putting your heart and soul into it,” work. Many small business owners have decided that it makes more sense to hang on to your good workers, treat them well and just turn down work than to try to grow and take on additional help with a questionable work ethic. The question begs to be asked; is there a new societal problem that is influencing a decline in productivity and work ethic? If so, is there anything that can be done about it?
There is no question that our environment has an influence on who we become and what we do in life. There is a very wise axiom that you will become the average of your five closest friends. It’s because you are open to their influence and their influence is the most repetitive and consistent. The bigger picture is of the influence of a society and it’s significant emotional events during an individual’s formative years. In other words what was happening in the world in your formative years (a terrorist attack, a war, a peace movement, economic upheaval) that made a lasting impact on your values and how you view the world? Professor Morris Massey made this study famous in the late 1960s and 1970s at the University of Colorado at Boulder. Massey believed there are three key formative periods that shaped who you became. He named those key periods the “Imprint” period, the “Modeling” period and the “Socialization” period. Without getting into the details of Massey’s findings the overall view is that yes, there certainly may be a societal influence on productivity and work ethic. It can be global (an entire nation) or local (a work environment in a school or manufacturing plant) but there is definitely an influence. Imagine working for a boss or under a government who, it has been determined, is crooked and constantly out to get you. How likely are you to put in extra hours and be completely honest and forthright in your work? What if “that determination” about the boss is false but the prevailing belief (Rumor) is that it is true, is your behavior influenced by prevailing beliefs that are untrue or by unknown facts? In both cases the belief or the fact of unfairness will influence your behavior. If you believe you are not getting enough or that someone owes you and you are not likely to get what you are owed, will that influence your behavior? You can answer these questions for yourself but I believe it’s pretty clear that we do make choices that are influenced by the prevailing attitude and belief of our surroundings because we tend to want to fit in. What society as a whole values and believes today is much different than it was in the 1930s or the 1960s and so on.
So, let’s say we decide based on this evidence that there is a legitimate societal influence causing a decline in productivity and work ethic, making people less likely to want to work. Then that brings us to the next question, can anything be done about it?
Getting past the imprint of our formative years is not an easy task. Massey allowed for what he called “Significant Emotional Events” or SEE, that could bump us out of our belief system and values. But they had to be truly significant, as in big enough to cause major emotional impact that overcomes the original emotional imprint. Something like the loss of a loved one that makes you question you beliefs about life and death or a terrorist attack that makes you question you belief in the good of humanity. So, the good news is, We Can Change the bad news is it won’t be easy. But does this answer the question of can anything be done about a decline in productivity and work ethic? (Eric Chester in his book “Reviving Work Ethic” addresses much of this conundrum and is well worth the read.) But, as far as actually creating significant emotional events, like the ones Morris Massey talks about, in order to facilitate that change is beyond the ability of just about every organization and therefore not a viable option. Which leaves us with the arduous task of finding those who have already experienced their own values reset from a Significant Emotional Event or those whose formative years were the right work ethic imprint. It’s a little bit like mining for gold, the exploration will cost you but if you find the right people you will have a big payoff.
Where can you find the work ethic imprint? Look back peoples past beyond their recent work history to how the spent their formative years, get an insight into whether work was normal and fun for them. Get help in formulating the right interview questions and scenarios and make the hiring process a system. No more going by your gut if you want a winning team, you have to be an expert hunter (work ethic finder) and farmer (work ethic developer). You can’t just expect people to want to work and know the benefits of hard work when you hire them now days. The work ethic of the old days is harder to find but it is still out there. The question is are you willing to do the work to find it and then cultivate it? Nucor steel made it a hiring policy to hire farmer work ethic and to find this their interview process is in-depth and like Southwest Airlines, Nucor uses written tests and in-depth interviews to evaluate job candidates. It also relies on the expertise of industrial psychologists, who frequently visit the company's plants to screen prospects and evaluate employees.
There is no question that our environment has an influence on who we become and what we do in life. There is a very wise axiom that you will become the average of your five closest friends. It’s because you are open to their influence and their influence is the most repetitive and consistent. The bigger picture is of the influence of a society and it’s significant emotional events during an individual’s formative years. In other words what was happening in the world in your formative years (a terrorist attack, a war, a peace movement, economic upheaval) that made a lasting impact on your values and how you view the world? Professor Morris Massey made this study famous in the late 1960s and 1970s at the University of Colorado at Boulder. Massey believed there are three key formative periods that shaped who you became. He named those key periods the “Imprint” period, the “Modeling” period and the “Socialization” period. Without getting into the details of Massey’s findings the overall view is that yes, there certainly may be a societal influence on productivity and work ethic. It can be global (an entire nation) or local (a work environment in a school or manufacturing plant) but there is definitely an influence. Imagine working for a boss or under a government who, it has been determined, is crooked and constantly out to get you. How likely are you to put in extra hours and be completely honest and forthright in your work? What if “that determination” about the boss is false but the prevailing belief (Rumor) is that it is true, is your behavior influenced by prevailing beliefs that are untrue or by unknown facts? In both cases the belief or the fact of unfairness will influence your behavior. If you believe you are not getting enough or that someone owes you and you are not likely to get what you are owed, will that influence your behavior? You can answer these questions for yourself but I believe it’s pretty clear that we do make choices that are influenced by the prevailing attitude and belief of our surroundings because we tend to want to fit in. What society as a whole values and believes today is much different than it was in the 1930s or the 1960s and so on.
So, let’s say we decide based on this evidence that there is a legitimate societal influence causing a decline in productivity and work ethic, making people less likely to want to work. Then that brings us to the next question, can anything be done about it?
Getting past the imprint of our formative years is not an easy task. Massey allowed for what he called “Significant Emotional Events” or SEE, that could bump us out of our belief system and values. But they had to be truly significant, as in big enough to cause major emotional impact that overcomes the original emotional imprint. Something like the loss of a loved one that makes you question you beliefs about life and death or a terrorist attack that makes you question you belief in the good of humanity. So, the good news is, We Can Change the bad news is it won’t be easy. But does this answer the question of can anything be done about a decline in productivity and work ethic? (Eric Chester in his book “Reviving Work Ethic” addresses much of this conundrum and is well worth the read.) But, as far as actually creating significant emotional events, like the ones Morris Massey talks about, in order to facilitate that change is beyond the ability of just about every organization and therefore not a viable option. Which leaves us with the arduous task of finding those who have already experienced their own values reset from a Significant Emotional Event or those whose formative years were the right work ethic imprint. It’s a little bit like mining for gold, the exploration will cost you but if you find the right people you will have a big payoff.
Where can you find the work ethic imprint? Look back peoples past beyond their recent work history to how the spent their formative years, get an insight into whether work was normal and fun for them. Get help in formulating the right interview questions and scenarios and make the hiring process a system. No more going by your gut if you want a winning team, you have to be an expert hunter (work ethic finder) and farmer (work ethic developer). You can’t just expect people to want to work and know the benefits of hard work when you hire them now days. The work ethic of the old days is harder to find but it is still out there. The question is are you willing to do the work to find it and then cultivate it? Nucor steel made it a hiring policy to hire farmer work ethic and to find this their interview process is in-depth and like Southwest Airlines, Nucor uses written tests and in-depth interviews to evaluate job candidates. It also relies on the expertise of industrial psychologists, who frequently visit the company's plants to screen prospects and evaluate employees.
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