It is obvious why your employer benefits if you work smarter, but what do you get out of it?
How do you benefit?
Why would you want to?
To resist changing what’s working (you think)
There probably are as many reasons why you should want to work smarter as there are people. First, due to a possible cynical reaction, some people might just resist any efforts to change or “work smarter”, saying like, “If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it” or “It’s worked for me so far, I’m not going to change now!” But, then, if you don’t have the total picture of the situation or circumstances, those responses might not be based on reality or reasonableness.
To avoid a potential conflict situation
Some people will just try to “go along to get along”, meaning, they would try to accommodate what they think is an appropriate reaction. It might not necessarily be smarter in the sense intended. It might be just different, not necessarily better. In this case, the response is intended to avoid accountability or responsibility (we’ll discuss the differences in these terms in a future post) and just defer to someone else to make the decision.
For better rewards, income, career progression, success, etc.
Selfish reasons are not always negative reasons. There is a balance between “what you get” and “what I get” out of a situation. People always have a reason for why they do anything, and, if it is mutually beneficial, all the better.
You understand the “contract” between you and your employer
You are compensated for adding value in some way with your job. To be compensated and rewarded more, you know you need to add more value to strengthen the business or organization, and, in so doing, you provide your employer with more value / means to share more with you. There is this mutually beneficial relationship where everyone tries to continually improve and strengthen the relationship / agreement / contract.
You’re values drive you to do the right thing
Many people never question when asked to do something that they philosophically agree with or it is, at least, consistent with their belief system. Improving your work because it helps your customers, the company, your coworkers, or your community is what many folks do naturally. Maybe they expect something out of it, but I’d guess many times, they don’t, except for the sense of contribution, helping others to be and feel better about themselves and their situation.
With a myriad of reasons why anyone should want to “work smarter” when challenged to do so — I contend you should always want to try to find ways to work smarter even when not directly challenged. To be the best that you can be for yourself, you owe it to yourself to continually strive to improve and get better.
To be the best you can be
If you employer doesn’t recognize and/or reward you for that, maybe you should ask yourself, “Is this really the right place for me to be?”
Below is a related video that speaks to “Work Smarter” vs. “Work Harder”.
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