Staying in your Lane

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As you are driving down a street you may decide to change lanes and do so with ease…. Some things you will likely consider are using a turn signal, checking your mirrors and any blind spots, and then carefully moving into the next lane.  While this blog is not about changing lanes in this context, we are applying this concept to the business world.

Have you ever found yourself repeating the old analogy, “It’s not rocket science, even I can do it”?  Essentially you are implying you can easily ‘change lanes’ and are capable of not only do the job for which you were hired, but can also assume and execute the tasks of another! Perhaps your education, personal skill set or previous work experience has trained you to lean toward this way of thinking, but there are some pitfalls associated with this approach. If you ‘change lanes’ without checking those ‘blind spots’ what hazards are being overlooked?

Respect - Does respect for the person performing the task diminish when you ‘change lanes’ and assume their responsibilities or part of their workload? Are implying ownership of tasks that are not assigned in your wheel house?

Productivity - If you had to perform that task on a daily basis, would you really enjoy it? How would it hamper your current workload and daily duties?

Morale - Would you be able to remain passionate or creative about the task? Would taking on the task improve everyone’s workload or skew it? By taking on the task is the company ‘morale’ improved or weakened?

Commitment - Would you choose and/or be able to dedicate time to the success of that task for the necessary duration?

When you find yourself ‘changing lanes’ it shouldn't be with the attitude 'Anything you can do, I can do better!' Take a moment to step back and evaluate your position. Your goal should be for the overall objectives given to each member to be accomplished efficiently and effectively. Your motives should be for the greater good, company-wide success.

There will inevitably be times when ‘changing lanes’ is necessary, but knowing when to by-pass a task or when to pull over and help should be approached with care and deliberation. ‘Changing lanes’ abruptly and into oncoming traffic can be harmful and perilous to your working relationships and the business culture. Navigate with extreme caution!