If You’re Not an Employee, Employ Yourself

employee

/em’ploiē/

A person hired to provide services to a company on a regular basis in exchange for compensation.

I’m now an employee of Gartner, the firm that acquired L2. It’s been less painful, though still painful, than expected, as the people are smart and nice. The last time I was an employee was twenty-five years ago at Morgan Stanley, my first job after UCLA. I had dozens of part-time jobs, but nothing with health benefits or the expectation of being an agent of the firm. Being an employee, and the wage-for-labor compact, is key to capitalism and something Americans are good at. Most Americans, that is.

The skills and attributes necessary to be an entrepreneur are celebrated in the media every day—vision, risk-taking, grit. But few mention the skills needed to be a good employee. I possess almost none of them. People assume that because I’m an entrepreneur, I have extraordinary talents too big for a company. The truth about 90-plus percent of entrepreneurs is that we start companies not because we’re so skilled, but because we don’t have the skills to be an effective employee. On a risk-adjusted basis, being an employee for a good or great firm is more rewarding than being an entrepreneur. Again, something not discussed in a media obsessed with “innovators.”

Some of those attributes:

1. Being a grown-up. Yeah, it sucks to be a grown-up and have to do things you may not want to do or that may not make sense. Commuting to and from work at the exact apex of traffic congestion and going to meetings that have no relevance to your job make no sense. But they’re paying you and hopefully covering the cost to have that mole removed. Being an adult is about recognizing that it’s not all about you.
      Working for yourself, everything you do is mostly for you. At the time, your actions make sense, as you’re in charge. Yesterday, we came into the office to find corporate calendars on our desks with inspirational quotes for each month. In January, we’re to “Discover, Learn & Grow.” Good to know. I believe posting inspirational quotes in the workplace qualifies as employee abuse. Writing about it helps.
2. Civility. Because I’m an entrepreneur and usually the guy in charge, people have romanticized my candor as vision and leadership. However, this mix of anger, honesty, and feedback wouldn’t fly in an employee, since there’s a difference between being right and being effective. Employees must navigate the two and realize they are part of a team, and they need to be supportive of one another. Show me an asshole in a small- to medium-size firm—that’s usually the guy or gal who runs the place. As a firm gets bigger, the top person can’t be a jerk, as this “radical candor” doesn’t scale well. Small firms thrive on six to twelve A players working their asses off who are intolerably impatient. Big firms scale with hundreds or thousands of well-mannered B+ players.
3. Being secure with yourself. Working for other people means living in the unknown. You often find yourself unable to interpret verbal or nonverbal cues, or your review, for that matter. You’re not sure what the people who can shape your economic well-being have planned, or not planned, for you. Right out of college, I was deeply insecure (now I’m just insecure), and every time people went into a conference room I assumed they were talking about me. It wasn’t vision but insecurity that led me to entrepreneurship.

Now, as an employee of Gartner, I endure a fraction of the BS most employees do, and am more Zen about it. I don’t know if they’re scared of me, have no idea what to do with me, or just don’t give a damn … but they generally leave me alone and are supportive. It’s strange being an employee, with no direct reports in the company you founded … discovering via email, like everyone else, what the firm has planned. I’m floating in space a bit. A nice shiny suit, people impressed, a nice view (i.e., success), but not tethered to the mother ship anymore. The insecurity is setting in again. Do I add value? What am I doing here? Do they like me?

Namath

The most rewarding part of my job is when young people who trust me seek counsel from me about their next move or other work matters. At this age, some of the kids, as I call them, become your adult kids, and you become concerned about their well-being. It’s rewarding, as it scratches a maternal/paternal itch we have as we get older.

I’m Joe Namath dropping in on a Jets practice. Everyone is respectful of what I’ve built and wants to meet or speak to me. However, I’m worried I’ll soon be Drunk Joe Namath, where everyone is trying to figure out the polite (and least awkward) way of telling me to leave the building. It’s coming. Until then, I’m in their employ.