Annual Review, Apathy and Diverting Energy
In this edition of Meeting Notes I share an annual review infographic and a short piece about apathy and frustration in work.
Hi,
I hope you are safe and well. I've officially finished for the year and this newsletter is the last one of 2024. I'll be back in 2025.
This newsletter:
- Annual Review
- Frustration is better than apathy
For those new to the Meeting Notes newsletter, welcome, I’m Rob, Chief Reflections Officer at Cultivated Management. This newsletter is about learning, communication, leadership and the art of being effective at work. Welcome.
Annual Review - 2024
As is tradition, the last newsletter of the year is the annual review.
Instead of boring you with too many words (although many of you do tell me how much you like the reflections), I thought I'd share a high level summary instead.
As with previous reviews (2023, 2022), I use the Pillars of Life as a frame to conduct the review.
I grab some time (about 3 hours last Monday), some paper and a pencil, and I write about the highs and lows for each pillar.
I won't share the details this year. I am finding the reviews are getting more personal and insightful as each year passes.
I do wonder why that is. Maybe I'm getting better at reflecting? Maybe I'm just getting old and sentimental? Maybe I'm just opening up a little more to the realities of life? Who knows?
The numbers on the included infographic (enable images if you can't see it) are subjective. There is no excel spreadsheet or calculation sitting behind it. They are my own feelings about how I'm tracking against each pillar. I think many people go wrong with annual reviews when they try to drive it all by data.
Anyhow - let me know if you prefer this high level summary, or whether you'd rather I rambled about each pillar for a bit.
Apathy is far worse than frustration
I'm always a little bemused when leaders and managers tell me they're frustrated with frustrated people.
They often see the frustration, sometimes anger, as something to be quashed and controlled. If only we could stop people being frustrated in the workplace.
I tell them to look at it somewhat differently.
Frustrated people care.
They want to make the work better. Frustrated people want to do a good job but are banging their heads against the system, or politics, or stupidity in the business.
Frustrated people vent their emotions at leaders and managers because they want someone to listen. They want someone to do something to help them.
"Why can't they just help themselves instead of needing management?".
In my experience frustrated people have already tried to fix the work, or the business.
They've solved the problems they can solve.
They've formed, cajoled, rallied and organised people to solve that which is frustrating them. And it's not worked. The chances are frustrated people are leaning into systemic problems. These systemic problems often need management support or intervention.
They are frustrated and, directly or not, they are asking for help. They're looking for you to pull a lever of change. They're looking for air cover. They're looking for someone to listen.
They may even be looking for advice (although be careful about inflicting help). They're frustrated because they care.
It's management's job to listen. To understand. To empathise. To guide, support or help. To pull levers. To tackle systemic problems. To encourage. To lead. To do something.
Because, after frustration takes it toll on people, and energy is sapped, and enthusiasm wanes, and people realise they simply cannot fix what lies in front of them, you get apathy.
With apathy comes little to no care at all.
You get disengagement. You get indifference. You get impassive behaviours. You get little to no inspiration, energy or attachment to work. People have given up.
There's only so long people will be frustrated at work.
Take the time to listen, and understand, and divert that energy and frustration into solving problems and making work better.
Do all that you can to channel frustrations into something meaningful or positive for people and the business.
It's much easier to deal with frustrated people than it is with people who've given up. Frustration is much better than apathy.
Have a cracking Christmas break and I shall see you in 2025.
And if you haven't already seen the new Zero To Keynote book, it's now available in digital and printed (printed is UK only).
Have a good one.
Rob
If you enjoyed this newsletter then please consider:
- Sharing this content with others you feel would get value from it.
- Downloading the free ebook 10 Behaviours of effective employees.
- Buy a copy of Zero to Keynote
- Buy a copy of Take A Day Off
- Sitting the online Communication Super Power Workshop to develop your super power in work
It means a lot. Thank you.
Until next time
Rob..
