THE ASPIRATIONAL EXECUTIVE AND THE JOB THAT WASN’T WHAT HE THOUGHT

Here, in his new Daily Telegraph column, Mark Price shares his workplace fables – all true stories from the business front line that can teach us lessons about success and happiness in the workplace

The Aspirational Executive often thought about what life would be like once he had the top job at his firm. He daydreamed about how he would tell people what to do and how they would leap to get it done. He imagined setting out a clear strategy for growth, which everyone would immediately understand and follow unquestioningly, pushing the company to new heights never before realised. Now that he had this picture in mind, the Aspirational Executive was determined to prove to everyone that he could be the best and get the top job. Every ounce of his energy and focus went into achieving his goal.

Eventually, the Aspirational Executive was successful and was appointed the boss of his firm. Once he got the job, he discovered it wasn’t anything like he imagined at all. Not one bit. Rather than just being in charge and telling people what to do, he needed to achieve things through his managers. And, as he discovered, his managers had egos that needed to be nurtured and had to be given space in which to operate.

The Aspirational Executive discovered the top job was more about giving his team the support to perform. He had to create a cooperative working environment, rather than running things as he had wanted to do. He unhappily completed his time, always disappointed and wishing the job was something it wasn’t.

Moral of the tale

It’s great to plan for the future, but make sure you fully understand what your aspirations involve.

‘His managers had egos that needed to be nurtured’