You can be very happy being a gopher
Life is real simple. We can group people into three main sections. In one group are the people who fetch stuff for people, let’s call them the gophers. In another, you can be one of those who tell people what to fetch, let’s call them the leaders. Most of us do both in varying degrees, sometimes fetching and sometimes leading. In the reward system in which we operate, gophers tend to earn less than leaders. And leaders generally have more stress than gophers, although stress is universally accessible.
So what do you want to be? A gopher or a leader? And to what degree? At work I regularly wash wares, put out the garbage and sometimes play the courier role. To me these activities bring relief from brain work as well as sometimes bringing joy to our cash flow. (like when I pick up a cheque from a client).
I think the best leaders are also good at being gophers and that gophers can also lead. What do you think?
18 December, 2010, 6:49 pm