Shoutout to the guy who told me to stop trying to be the 'perfect' employee

For years, I thought the key to moving up was to never say no and be the first one in, last one out. I was putting in 60 hour weeks at my old job in Phoenix, answering emails at 10 PM, and basically living to work. The tipping point was when my boss, during a casual chat, said 'You know, the people who get promoted here are the ones who solve big problems, not the ones who just work the longest hours.' That hit me like a ton of bricks. I was so focused on showing I was dedicated that I wasn't actually building the skills or taking on the projects that mattered. I was just burning myself out for the appearance of hard work. Has anyone else had a moment where they realized their whole approach to 'hard work' was actually holding them back?

2 comments

2 Comments

jakelee15d ago

Man, that boss did you a solid. Sounds like you were running on a hamster wheel thinking it was a ladder. Classic move, mistaking being busy for being useful. I've seen so many people wreck themselves trying to look like the hardest worker instead of the smartest one. That "first in, last out" thing is just a great way to get tired and bitter. Glad you figured it out before you burned out completely.

noran2115d ago

That hamster wheel thing hits home, jakelee. My last warehouse job had a guy who bragged about his 70 hour weeks like it was a badge of honor. He got passed over for a lead spot because he was always too buried in the grind to see the bigger picture. It's a tough lesson to learn.