“On the side” is a very big thing for us.
In the movie “When Harry Met Sally,” Harry (Billy Crystal) accuses Sally (Meg Ryan) of it being a big thing for her, too:
Harry Burns: There are two kinds of women: high maintenance and low maintenance.
Sally Albright: Which one am I?
Harry: You’re the worst kind; you’re high maintenance but you think you’re low maintenance.
Sally: I don’t see that.
Harry: You don’t see that? Waiter, I’ll begin with a house salad, but I don’t want the regular dressing. I’ll have the balsamic vinegar and oil, but on the side. And then the salmon with the mustard sauce, but I want the mustard sauce on the side. “On the side” is a very big thing for you.
Sally: Well, I just want it the way I want it.
Harry: I know; high maintenance.
Since this movie first graced the big screen in 1989, “on the side” has become more of the norm than the exception. And not just in restaurants.
More than ever, employees have a lil’ sumpin’ sumpin’ on the side when it comes to their careers and livelihood. Designers freelance. Account Managers have “outside” accounts. Office Managers have rental properties. Secretaries start with a network marketing company. VPs have 10% ownership in some exciting venture startup.
Chances are, the majority of people you come across every day has something on the side.
As easy as it might be to condemn such behavior, bosses instead need to embrace it. There’s nothing wrong with admitting that maybe, just maybe, your current workplace can’t meet all of your professional goals and curiosities. In fact, it might not even be able to train you in some of the areas you’re most interested in.
Instead of denying that it’s happening in your office, learn how to leverage it. Ask your employees what they’re working on. Find out what they’re learning. Get to know them more, and get to know what they can do for the company more.
The openness and the variety will be extremely refreshing for the entire office. Plus, if you don’t embrace the on-the-side mentality that is surely present with your current employees, they might soon be on the other side.
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Love the article Brett, it would be nice if more companies realized that just because someone is working on something outside of their job that they might get fired for no reason….also, love the new layout!
Travis
Great insights into the attitudes we hold about those around us. We tend to be selfish about our wants. Take another job? How dare they! Buy from my competitor? They don’t appreciate quality!
I think if we take these actions as “communication by deed” then we can learn incredible things about our business, relationships, and customers.
Kinda makes Daniel Pink’s idea of a “Free Agent Nation” quite prophetic and accurate, huh?
Thanks on the layout. I definitely won’t let the cartoons last (that’s a default), but I’m digging the rest of it. More tweaking to come – I just can’t seem to settle down. By the way, I got it through iThemes.