I read a fantastic post on Marshall Goldsmith’s blog recently which really re-inforced for me how much our expectations,  mindsets (and not to mention training) affect out experience and performance at work.

It talks specifically about “Knowledge Workers” (people who know more about what they are doing than their managers do), and their attitudes towards their managers.

It refers to Peter Drucker’s  observation that “they are occupied with efforts rather than results. They worry over what the organization and their superiors ‘owe’ them and should do for them, and they are conscious above all, of the authority they ‘should have’.”

It explains that the reason for this is that  “Many knowledge workers have years of education and experience in training for their positions, yet have almost no training in how to effectively influence decision makers.”

So the upshot is that these people have great knowledge but are often not equipped to use this effectively because of their lack of influencing skills – surely a recipe for frustration and demotivation?

If this situation resonates with you or reminds you of someone take a look at the great advice that Goldsmith’s blog offers.

http://marshallgoldsmith.blogspot.com/

“The greatest ability in business is to get along with others and to influence their actions.” – John Hancock