Just whose inconvenience is it?
"An inconvenience is only an adventure wrongly considered; an adventure is an inconvenience rightly considered" Gilbert K. Chesterton
Have you ever seen a sign like this? Are 'they' really sorry for the inconvenience? Is the inconvenience really necessary? Who is really getting inconvenienced and why? I often wonder. Convenience, according to Oxford Languages, is the state of being able to proceed with something with little effort or difficulty. It is indeed, what we all desire. To live our lives and conduct our work with order and ease. Unfortunately this is not possible. Life is hard. Work is hard. Leading is hard. Serving customers is hard. When it comes to the interaction of two parties - the leader and the led or a business and a customer, someone is getting inconvenienced.
On the surface the answer is easy. The subordinate assumes the inconvenience of doing something a leader directs. A business assumes inconvenience addressing the needs of a customer. However, I've seen violations of this meaning, the wrong party assuming the inconvenience.
A business which is rigid in its practices and limits what it does for its customers passes the inconvenience to the customer. A leader who fails to delegate wrongly assumes the inconvenience of conducting a task a subordinate ought to complete. A subordinate who is self-centered or lazy does the bare minimum, leaving the hard work or inconvenience to others. Passing the inconvenience to others often is a sign of selfishness, big ego, and or laziness.
In my small businesses we operate off a philosophy of, "get them to yes." This philosophy embodies a spirit of going the extra mile, doing the extra work, and assuming the inconvenience ourselves instead of passing it to a customer. It may be inconvenient for us to squeeze a customer consult in at the end of the day or to prepare several proposals for a customer to contemplate but we know if we, not our customers, assume the inconvenience, our business will thrive.
In leadership, I'll do the hard work required to tackle complex problems or place myself at the point of conflict in order to protect my people, thus assuming the inconvenience. I may inconvenience my people to help them learn and grow. As a subordinate, I always went the extra mile for leaders I respected and admired. I would take the inconvenience from my boss to free him or her to think, strategize, and direct the organization.
The point here is to contemplate who should be inconvenienced. If a business restricts entry to one door just because it is easier for them to manage customer traffic, or if they require multiple forms and signatures before ordering a product, they are wrongly inconveniencing the customer and they may suffer the consequences. If a subordinate, working under a fair and caring leader, does the bare minimum, leaving their boss with the inconvenience of having to do extra work they are wrongly leaving their boss with the inconvenience and the greater organization may suffer.
Just whose inconvenience is it anyway? Be selfless with your answer. It will take you and your team a long way.
Make it Personal!
Rob
Rob Campbell