“Without asking, my boss did this…
Feb 08, 2024Without asking, my boss at the time (20+ years ago) made a decision without asking me that affected me so much that I just shared this story again last week in front of thousands of people.
My wife and I were getting ready for the arrival of our first child. Funds were tight so I changed my 401K contribution to “zero”, as we needed as much money accessible now for expenses. My boss at the time (Steve G.) noticed this and immediately gave me a small base pay increase; without asking me “why”, without asking my “permission” (jokingly), and even without telling me as he didn’t want/need to take credit for this gesture (graciously).
I DID call HR. To ask them to double-check the process and ensure the increase was intended.
I DID call HR to then SHARE MY OVERWHELMING GRATITUDE for this act and the actions of the organization and my boss.
Earlier this week at another presentation, I asked the attendees this question:
“When was the MOST APPRECIATED you’ve ever felt in a workplace environment?”
One brave person shared that when she was going through cancer treatments, the Chef and her Hotel Colleagues organized personalized meals to be delivered to her and her family. During her recovery, she knew she was APPRECIATED beyond words by their ACTIONS.
Part of my MOST PEOPLE DON’T, BUT YOU DO discussion encouraged these participants to OBSERVE, ANTICIPATE, AND OVER-DELIVER for each other (at work, at home, and in your community). Many of us, in our professional roles, are implementing this approach for our CUSTOMERS every single day.
Why wouldn’t we apply the same to each other that we work with, live with, and interact with?
Thank you again to the Long Beach CVB and Steve G. for OBSERVING my action of reducing my contribution. For ANTICIPATING that I would need more money with the birth of our child, and for OVER-DELIVERING with an increase (without asking and without needed recognition).
An article by Gartner (3.23) shares ideas regarding the “future of work”:
- Employees are people, not just workers.
- Work is a subset of life, not separate from it.
- Value comes through feelings, not just features.
“While 82% of employees say it’s important for their organization to see them as a person, not just as an employee, only 45% of employees believe their organization actually sees them this way.”
How has your organization utilized the “OBSERVE, ANTICIPATE, AND OVER-DELIVER” approach? How will you implement this with those that you work with professionally and interact with personally?
Do it “WITHOUT ASKING”.
