Fear is a feeling and an experience that is fully rooted in the
future. Without the future, fear cannot exist. Every form of fear is based on
an expectation or anticipation of something negative. Every fear is of the
future. You're afraid of a painful possibility, a negative development or a
repeat of a bad experience.
Every form of fear is based on what you think may happen or
could happen, not what has already happened. There is no fear of the past, no,
the past is the root and source of regrets, regret belongs and is rooted in
your past; fear comes and is rooted in your future.
Our reaction to fear however, as mankind is choices and
decision. To address what you fear in the future, you make a choice and
decision in the present, to mitigate, nullify or neutralise a possible negative
or unpleasant future occurrence or situation.
I believe everyone is afraid of poverty. We hate to be broke, we
hate the lack, embarrassment, disdain, disrespect and oppression that comes
with poverty. No one appreciates a situation where money is the only answer and
sadly, money is not available.
Consequently, money has become the control key for human effort
in productivity and labour. If there's no monetary reward tied to employment,
many people will not work.
If work was just for the fun of it; no salary, no perks, no
income, you'll probably not even go to school in order to obtain a good
employment. Money is the major driving force behind employment and productivity
in the world today. Either as an employee or an entrepreneur, Money is
absolutely important to all.
I've come to realise that in life that being familiar with
anything or anyone eventually brings disdain and disrespect. Whatever you
demystify, you hardly respect.
Many people in employment today had a very different attitude
and disposition to employment when they were still in the labour market seeking
for employment. In the days of their being very broke and busted, when they had
to depend on friends, family and benevolence to feed, clothe, transport, make
phone calls and pay for medical needs; the way they saw employment and employed
people was so different.
Being employed, especially in a well-established and organised
company was a big deal to them. As a matter of fact, a lot of prayers, hard
work, study and labour went into their ambition to secure an employment.
Daily I get mails and calls and even visits from unemployed
graduates who believe I can help them secure employment with MTN. For them,
being an employee in MTN is a dream come true. This is simply because MTN as a
business has over the years built a fantastic reputation and success story
making them a top choice for career seekers and builders in Nigeria.
Every employee wants to work in a great company; every employee
wants to be paid so well. Well enough to pay all their bills and afford all
their wants and desired luxury. We all want good jobs.
However, it's amazingly natural for many employees after
securing this employment to begin to disdain it and take it for granted.
I know many bankers, oil and gas company workers, employees at
multinationals, many people who are very well paid today in very, very good
companies who are very lazy, laidback, indolent and basically just take their
jobs and employment for granted.
They simply just forget they are paid to work. They begin to act
and think as though their salary is a right.
They forget their employment purpose and begin to prioritise
their rights and privileges as employees. They begin to fight, demand and
pressure employers for their rights without having earned it or delivered
company vision and ambition for the season. They ask and mobilise others to ask
the employers for entitlements they didn't work hard enough for, earn or
remember to pursue.
This same individual who whilst seeking employment looked
pitiful and was full of promises to give his or her best to the organisation
suddenly ignores the job, the work, the vision of the business and value
creation; this individual today, has shifted in thinking and attitude from hard
work and productivity, to employment rights and entitlements. Forgetting when
you're truly hardworking and productive, you need not fight for rights and
privileges.
Dear friend, let me tell you a secret, all employees are equal
but some are more equal than others.
You see, in many organisations extremely outstanding employees
don't fight for rights and privileges because they get it and even more without
asking. They just don't tell the rest of you.
In many organisations, extremely good employees have a
one-on-one relationship with their MDs or departmental directors. These leaders
confide in them and share classified information with them.
Extremely outstanding employees know many things about the
organisation that average and everyday employees don't know.
Let me tell you this as well, outstanding employees in many
organisations are compensated in many ways by their employers off the record.
They enjoy many things other employees don't enjoy simply because the employer
can't afford to let them leave. They are VIP employees.
Dear friend, you may right now begin to judge yourself as a good
and outstanding employee yet, you don't get this treatment. Being an
outstanding employee is not a matter of your opinion, it's based on the opinion
and perception of your employer.
Dear friend, are you today fighting your employer and demanding
for a right or agreement of a pay rise? Are you pressuring your employer to
fulfil the promise of a salary increase? Can we talk this morning?
Listen I'm not saying it is wrong to fight for your rights and
entitlements, no very far from it. I believe if your employer has made a
promise or signed and agreement they should live up to it. You're absolutely in
line. But let's picture this matter from another perspective; the real perspective.
You see, many employees have actually never enjoyed any real
form of salary increase in as far back as 10 years despite regular addition to
their annual income by their employers.
Let me explain this. The fact that on paper your salary has
appreciated and the figures have increased does not mean you actually enjoyed
an increase in reality. This is neither your fault nor that of your employer,
it's simply the fault of inflation.
If you enjoyed a 6% increase in your total income at the start
of the year and that same year the general prices of goods and services
escalated by 10%, you have actually experienced a 4% decrease in your
purchasing power. That means what you could buy with your salary the previous
year has reduced by 4% despite a 6% growth in your income figures. It's the
effect of inflation.
Dear friend, how do you intend to deal with it this year? How do
you beat this situation of a perpetual decrease in your purchasing power
despite yearly increase in salary figures?
It's pretty simple, grow your income at a higher percentage than
inflation every year! And how do you do this? Become a top performer in your
organisation.
Listen to this statistics, average employees increase their
income at about 5% per annum, this is less than inflation rates and the cost of
living which in Nigeria at times grow at between 9 to 13% per annum. Meaning
your income is actually decreasing.
Top performers in most fields increase their income from 10 to
20% every year – compounded year after year.
Listen to this truth. Top 20% of employees earn 80% of the
salary and the remaining 80% of employees earn the reaming 20% of salaries; the
left over. If you would, go and investigate this fact.
Dear friend, instead of fighting for a general salary increase
promised by your employer, why not just join the top 20% percent performers in
your organisation? Earn your increment through performance not protest. Stop
being an average employee, join the top performers. If you don't, you need to
really be afraid of your financial future as ultimately depending on general
salary increases will make you broke, inflation would rubbish your pay.
Dear friend, out-earn inflation.
Please enjoy your day
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