with Britt Reints
Forget the 9 to 5; Full Time, All the Time is a blog about the mobile working life - when you have the freedom to work from anywhere and the responsibility of always having your smartphone turned on. Britt Reints works as a freelance writer while traveling fulltime in an RV with her husband and two kids. She explores balancing real-life bills with an unconventional work life, and finding time to maintain relationships with family and friends.
You can also find Britt at InPursuitOfHappiness.net.
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I spent the first 15 years of my career working in sales, with a big chunk of that time being devoted to advertising sales. I’m not sure if there is a more competitive work environment than one that is populated by people who live on commission. There’s a very distinct sense that the pie is finite and anything you get represents something I’m not getting.
There wasn’t a lot of building co-workers up going on in our morning meetings and the only people you’d expect to see offering a salesperson guidance was a sales manager. Sales people are tight lipped about their leads and their tricks of the trade because their co-workers are their competition.
Since changing career paths recently, I’ve been surprised to find that this unwillingness to share is not confined to sales. I’ve seen the proprietary hold on trade secrets in writers, editors, and designers. I’ve heard about it among project managers and legal experts. Time and again I see professionals keep a white knuckle grip on their knowledge in a desperate attempt to avoid helping anyone else get unfairly ahead.
What the heck is that about?
Has no one heard the adage about a rising tide raising all boats? Granted, that idiom is usually used in reference to the economy as a whole, but doesn’t it hold true on a smaller scale? If helping you helps my company or industry, that is good news for me.
When I worked in sales, I had no problem volunteering to train the new guys. I enjoyed brainstorming with my colleagues about possible leads or pitches. I celebrated with my friends at work when they closed a big deal, especially if I’d been encouraging them to go after it in the first place.
Occasionally, that came back to bite me. Once in a while someone would fly past me in the ranks and forget to acknowledge my help (or existence). And when that happened, I can’t deny that I was mad as hell.
But that was rare. And looking back, I think those instances were more about someone else being a slimeball than me being naive or lacking competitive drive.
I love competition.
But I also love progress. It doesn’t make sense to me to force someone to make the mistakes I have already made just because I had to. I don’t feel like my knowledge or skill set are “hard earned”, and therefore should be protected lest someone else come by them too easily.
I’m a fan of cooperation. I think what goes around comes around and it’s good living and good business to help out when you can. I’m eternally grateful to the people who have given me a leg up when they could and shared their own wisdom when I asked. I love when I’m able to pay that kindness forward.
What do you think? Is it really a dog-eat-dog world out there, or can we all do more by working together?
I think you have to learn how to identify who is going to be ethical and who isn’t. I always believe in giving credit where due. But I’ve worked with many who believe in taking their own credit and yours too. They seem to think it’s part of the job description - like if you don’t, you’re the dummy. Maybe that even makes you more expendable - certainly less deserving of a raise/promotion. I’ve even had people blame me for wrong things they (or their proteges) have done, hoping I’d never find out or be unable to defend myself.
Furthermore, if you have an idea that you believe will “raise all ships,” and you share it with someone other than the boss of the department/initiative, who’s to say he won’t use it for his benefit alone?
So I go by the feeling I get and what I observe. I share plenty - mostly as a mentor or directly with the boss who’s going to evaluate my contribution. I also keep a copy of all such discussions so that I can prove my contribution. Guess I have just been burned too many times.
SKL | May 11th, 2011 at 9:29 am
As a writer, I believe there is room for everyone. We all have different voices and different strengths and weaknesses. I’d much rather give you a lead on a project I think you’d be perfect for but would be difficult for me. Of course it would be good if you’d return the favor given the chance, but if you don’t, you don’t.
Megan | May 11th, 2011 at 10:58 am
What Megan said. All of my freelance work has been due to friends contacting/recommending me. I like to do the same for them.
Angella | May 13th, 2011 at 9:18 am
LOVED your article!! I worked in sales and as you said it’s cut-throat. In personal training people would steal your leads (and clients) from under you if you were not careful just so they could make the monthly top ten list for the entire state (some were trying to make the national top 10).
P.T. managers shared a few helpful tips but then kept the top leads for themselves and never backed you when closing. It was not a friendly environment but it taught me a lot of important lessons.
I’m with you on the cooperation. I closed more sales by tag teaming prospects than I ever did when flying solo and that’s how I learned who my real friends in the work place were. I also made the top 10 list practically every month so I know that you CAN be nice and still be successful : )
mneave | May 15th, 2011 at 8:32 pm