What is the Difference Between Bad and Good Employees?
Not many people go home at night and enthusiastically yell to their family as they walk in the door, “Want to know what people think of me at work? I am a puke, a slug, and my boss will fire me by noon tomorrow!” Few people show up at work wanting to fail. I am a believer that nearly all employees want to do well and can be good employees. Yet, the reality is that not everyone wins the gold medal or even makes the team. What is the difference between those who excel and those who don’t?
Understand that most people think they are performing better than they are. Most can perform significantly better than they are. With the right training and support almost anyone can make significant gains in their performance. Why would anyone not what to? Why do so few make a serious effort?
Bad and Good Employee Impact
The fact is that some people perform better than others. Research shows that 5% of the people produce 26% of the work or 400% more than you expect. They show up with energy, positive attitudes, ideas, creativity, and referrals. If you want to hire more of them, most are working and so you have to network to find them, to steal them from another company.
Poor performing employees are a drag and produce 30% below average. They also take 17% more management time than other employees. Also, they bring more complaints: sick days, theft, accidents, team conflicts, customer service or quality issues, and problems.
A Key Consideration for the Difference
Education, training, personal characteristics, relationships, and life circumstances will influence a person’s personal behavior and performance at work. Yet, bottom-line, the difference between bad and good employees is in the results. Now consider this: 70% of the impact on an employee’s engagement and performance relates to his or her direct supervisor.
If you are a manager take this to heart. Your leadership can help a poor employee become an average performer, an average employee good, a good employee a superstar, and a superstar…well the potential is unlimited. What can we learn from this? Your thoughts about what you will do better or differently?
By the way, do you want to elevate your performance and mor eeffectively lead by example? Check out this complimentary LEAD BY EXAMPLE ASSESSMENT.
Want to accelerate your career? Check out Rick’s Superstar Leadership self-study training plan.
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