Jennie Marshall | 8 April 2013
Is life always fair? We all face ups and downs in our life but how do we deal with the situation...
What's 'fair' and who determines it?
You and I have seen this; and, we've done it as well:
You graduate from university and suddenly start ranting about how
'all the good jobs' go to people with experience - people who are
older and who've been around longer.
Fast forward to your 'forties': "All the good jobs are being given
to young people fresh out of school. Our management figured out
they can hire them for less and save money."
Pick any scenario in life: When your income is lower than you'd
like, it's, "Tax the wealthier even more."
Voila! After a bump in your employment situation, you discover you
are in a new tax bracket. "Hmm, what are all these social programs
my taxes are paying for? Can't people figure out how to 'get a
life' like we did? And man, the salaries of the government workers
are way high for what they do, there's no accountability, and
everything looks mismanaged."
What's Fair?
'Fair; is, and always will be, determined by one's own situation,
sense of (or lack of) personal responsibility, worldview, and
values. I was working with a delegate today who yesterday was at a
meeting where a middle manager who was transferred lamented her
time at the current location. Why? The office was 'small' and had
only one window. In comes the new manager and shouts about how
thrilled he is that his office has a window. "The last building was
originally a warehouse and there just wasn't much window space to
be had. This is great!"
The issue of perspective knows no organisational limits. The
Managing Director of a client organisation shared a similar
incident when, due to the economic conditions, he downsized the
physical space in order to use the money to save some jobs. The
response of those involved: "I'm an executive; since when do
executives share office space?" He reminded them that they could
opt for another alternative to help him reduce costs.
Perspective defines the meaning of 'fair' in any situation. Before
making a change of any sort, discuss the reasons with everyone
involved and intentionally address the notion of 'fair'. Let people
know what you're trying to accomplish and why it's important.
Listen for ways to accomplish the goal that may have escaped you
and include them if they meet the criteria. Then, remember
this:
It still won't 'seem' fair to 100% of those involved because of
their beliefs about 'how thingsshouldbe'. In fact, some
peoplewill be impacted negatively. However, most will
ultimately respect you for 'being just' in how you dealt with the
situation.
Life Lesson 1: There is some percentage of people who believe that
they are always victims. You won't ever change that. You move on;
they won't.
Life Lesson 2: Life isn't fair. You don't have the power to make it
that way even if you want to.
Life Lesson 3: 'Fair' is a somewhat juvenile notion. As an adult
and a leader, you want to begin thinking about what is
'just'.
How can you ensure that all people are shown respect and dealt with
even-handedly in the most
difficult
situations
?
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