Money money money..
The higher up one goes in an organization, the more pertinent the question of money seems to become. Those 5k a month, straight out of college seemed like a fortune. Fast forward 10 years later and 15k a month is suddenly a middle class standard. The biggest problem of this all that this obsession with the number and the next big stepping stone distracts us from what really matters – having satisfaction with what we do.
It seems that with structures like variable pay or hierarchical salary progression, companies just keep creating disgruntled employees or professional career climbers that are there to make money instead of truly focusing on the best interests of the firm.
I really enjoyed this Daniel Pink video.
It talks about the three main factors that lead to better performance and personal satisfaction:
1. Autonomy
2. Mastery
3. Purpose
I think that the third one has been gaining an incredible importance in our generation but somehow the corporate world has been extremely slow to catch up.
It is sad somehow to see how big companies hire the best minds but then put them in a cage or a dark room, telling them that one day they will get a chance if they play nicely. Many of them fall for this illusion and start the endless climbing. They lose a part of themselves in the way.
The good news is that some are able to escape the trap. One of my theories is that those fugitives are one of the key enablers of the start up world and innovation overall.
My challenge is to support this movement.
Grobetrotter 