Please, Do Not Be a Hero at Work

  Yes, all supervisors feel proud when things at work get out of control, and they manage to fix them. There’s no doubt, it feels great to be a hero at work. But isn’t it the job of supervisors to create and maintain a chaos-free work environment? Or is chaos just something that happens by chance, a matter of bad luck?

  Let’s be clear: chaos is not a fortuitous event. Unfortunately, one of the main reasons chaos often takes over in many workplaces is because some managers don’t realize that their daily work plan must go beyond setting goals and deadlines. They also need to include clear objectives and proper logistics to support team members in doing their jobs efficiently and effectively.

  Yes, a perfect work plan doesn’t exist. However, supervisors need a well-thought-out work plan that can be realistically implemented, which considers possible failure scenarios and how to respond to them. Anticipating challenges is essential step for effective planning; neglecting this step can lead to chaos. Supervisors also need a couple of other things, empathy and compassion. There is no reason to put their work team under to unnecessary stress caused by poor planning, which ultimately results in ineffective execution of the plan. 

  You don’t need to be a management expert to know that chaos drains the energy of your entire team, decreases efficiency and productivity, and kills employee morale.

  Here are a few steps to prevent chaos in your workplace:

• Ensure your work plan includes clear objectives, along with the necessary materials, tools, and equipment.
• Understand how long each task takes so you can organize jobs to maintain a steady workflow.
• Don’t rely on hope; assume things will go wrong and prepare responses for potential failures.
• Plan ahead and make sure each team member knows their role.
• Track task progress and watch for bottlenecks.
• Create a system where team members can alert you if things aren’t going as planned.
• Set up a task force to quickly respond to unexpected events.
• When mistakes happen, avoid blaming others. Instead, ask yourself what you could have done to prevent them.

Your team and organization don’t want you to be the hero who saves them from chaos; they want you to prevent it. Do yourself a favor, don’t be the hero.

By Miguel Gonzalez