I have worked in a lot of places around the world, but never in Switzerland. Just not in Switzerland where apparently money grows on trees.
I thought I’d give it a try.
I’ll travel to Switzerland and try an entirely new type of job. It doesn’t matter that I don’t yet know my way around it, because it is for sure that I’ll do it right.
The project will be a job that has to do with cellular towers and it will all start with training.
The project consisted of me and 3 others who knew pretty much nothing on the subject just like I didn’t.
A Chinese bloke did the training in English and to be honest I had no idea what he was talking about for his accent was so strong his words could not be comprehended.
I had two options: I either nod along while having no clue what he is talking about or I prompt him and ask about everything.
So I literally stopped him every minute to have him please explain what he is talking about because if they want me to do something that would be useful I’d rather have to understand what I would be working with.
But you know what was astonishing?
That out of the other 3 guys – whom by the way have already worked in this field – none of them asked anything… and as it turned out that was not because they had a clue.
They listened, nodded, at times they blinked their eyes and in the end they stood up as ‘trained’ individuals all the while having no clue about the subject.
So then the next day they turned to me – the rookie – with their questions, like “so what do we have to do exactly”? And I started instructing them so they could get on with their jobs.
Albeit I was just as much a rookie as they were… simply I dared to ask because I had to understand what was expected of me in order to be able to do it… thus they were wasting my precious time.
And although this is an extreme example from Switzerland with cellular towers, how many similar cases do you think there are during everyday business situations?
When you tell a colleague or staff what his duties are or he attends a seminar, he sits and nods along while he is not really there, he is daydreaming, fiddling with his phone and then you find that he is just draining money and time.
Did you ever think about how much damage it causes YOU when your employee doesn’t know exactly what he should do? To ask? What for … he knows it all!
There is a simple rule: understanding results in application.
So if one UNDERSTANDS what he has to do then there is a good chance it will bear fruits. Slow or fast but it will bring about a result. Not confusion, not a foul product, not something else than what you’ve asked for. You will get exactly what you’ve asked for.
Now if someone is sitting there, nodding and knows it all and yet nothing happens then he doesn’t even know really what it is he doesn’t understand, he just feels things to be somewhat foggy.
And he thinks it would damage his reputation if he would ask about something…
So he’d rather just remain silent, nod as if he understood and in his mind hope ‘he’ll cope somehow’ …
Then he toddles on to do the job he should carry out and stands around baffled.
Or he procrastinates.
Or tries to ask help from someone it’s not embarrassing to ask from. Wasting precious time for others.
Or he starts doing something completely different than what he should.
And he just drains time and money. Producing nothing but thorns in your side.
One thing’s for sure: what YOU wanted is not done especially not on time.
If that seems too radical or harsh just give it a try: grab somebody who regularly makes mistakes and ask him to explain in detail and show what exactly is his job, what he has to do and why he has to do that.
You’ll be astounded by the reaction!
Will he tell that he doesn’t understand? Oh, no, he’d rather explain away!
YOU in turn know one who understands doesn’t explain but acts.
“Yeah, but the field of programing is different” – you could say – “since a developer has to get to know new technologies on a daily basis otherwise he falls behind.” And then also you hear everyone talking ‘programming’ all over the place every day and YOU don’t understand a word of it…
It doesn’t matter how they speak and what they say, or whether YOU understand what they have to tell, the same laws apply to the field of programing as any other field – nods, explains, act, does not act – just as in Switzerland.
I am a developer and I want to help you to work with the right person who will deliver – guaranteed.
If you want stable and good results from your developer (or anyone else) you have to make sure he UNDERSTANDS what you expect of him!
Yeah, but how!?
To be continued…
Zoltan Torteli