“You’re being childish for not Acting Your Wage.”
I was recently working with a manager who was brilliant, capable, and completely devoted to his team. He was the kind of leader who would roll up his sleeves and do whatever it took to get the job done. But there was one problem: his team was moving extremely slow compared to others at the company.
He checked every box of a great leader, except one.
I watched him spend hours troubleshooting a software issue that could have been easily delegated to a team member. I saw him spend an entire afternoon formatting a presentation when he could have easily outsourced it. Believe it or not, there are people who actually enjoy making bullet points look pretty. And I cringed every time I saw him formatting the images in a newsletter that was going out. It was like watching a brain surgeon spend her time healing rug burns.
Finally, I sat him down and said, “You need to act your wage.”
He looked at me, puzzled.
“You’re spending too much time on tasks that are below your pay grade,” I explained. “You’re not being paid to do those things. For the amount you are being paid, you should be leading, strategizing, and making decisions that impact the entire team.”
“Efficiency is doing things right; effectiveness is doing the right things.” – Peter Drucker’s
He got it. Right away, he shifted his daily activities and started to delegate more and only focus on the tasks that only he could do that matched how much he was getting paid. The result? His team became more productive, he felt less stressed, and the company’s bottom line improved.
What Does It Mean to “Act Your Wage”?
Every employee, even salaried employees, has a per-hour cost. “Acting your wage” means focusing on the tasks and responsibilities that match your level of compensation. It’s about delegating, outsourcing, or dropping tasks that can be done by others, and prioritizing the work that is best for you and matches your per-hour cost.
Acting your wage is crucial for maximizing productivity, boosting morale, reducing stress, and improving decision-making. When managers focus on their core responsibilities and delegate tasks that can be handled by others, they create a more efficient and fulfilling work environment for everyone. It’s like conducting an orchestra where each instrument plays its part to create a harmonious symphony, and the conductor (the manager) guides the overall performance, ensuring everyone is playing in sync and contributing to the masterpiece.
Here are the steps for managers who want to “act their wage”:
- Calculate Your Per-Hour-Value: Determine your per-hour cost to the company. This will help you understand the value of your time and make better decisions about how to spend it.
- List Out ALL Your Current Activities: Pull out a big whiteboard and list out every activity you do right now that fills up your days/weeks. Don’t forget to include “Googling cat videos” and “scrolling through social media.
- Add a Value to Each Activity: Assign a dollar value to each task you do. This will help you prioritize the tasks that are most important and delegate or outsource the rest. Pro tip: “responding to emails” is usually worth less than “developing a strategic plan :-).
- Delegate/Outsource Effectively: Clearly define tasks, provide necessary resources, and trust other people to get the job done. The Prioritization Funnel is a great tool to help you process this step. A study by Gallup found that CEOs who excel at delegation generate 33% higher revenue than those who don’t. Effective delegation allows leaders to focus on high-impact decision-making while empowering employees to develop new skills and contribute more meaningfully.
- Prioritize Your Time: Focus on the tasks that have the biggest impact on your team and organization.
- Set Boundaries: Don’t be afraid to say “no” to tasks that are below your pay grade or that don’t align with your priorities. Your time is valuable; don’t waste it on things that don’t matter. Warren Buffett famously said: “The difference between successful people and really successful people is that really successful people say no to almost everything.” Learning to say no to tasks that don’t align with your priorities ensures you have the bandwidth to focus on what truly matters.
By following these tips, managers can “act their wage” and create a more productive, positive, and successful work environment for themselves and their teams. They’ll be able to focus on the tasks that truly matter and empower their team members to shine. Plus, they might even have time to eat their lunch away from their computer desk.
