AVOID THE ENTITLEMENT MENTALITY

When I was managing Mitsubishi Electric, I was still young and not completely financially stable personally. I had an awesome killer team that was also young and hungry. I began the practice of taking them out to lunch every Friday. I would pay for their lunch myself because I didn’t feel the company should have that expense. This was my personal way of showing my appreciation. A few months into this, I ended up in a tough stretch where I was traveling almost nonstop. As a result, there were a few Fridays where we didn’t make it to lunch. Soon, there was muttering and complaining. Morale dropped. These employees had become so accustomed to going to lunch each Friday that they felt they were entitled to this perk. What started as a good intention led to my being the bad guy because I did not consistently provide them with their expected lunch.

I had a similar experience with my crew of teenagers. I would stock the fridge with food and soda pops so they could grab something to eat after they finished school and before they started to work. A few times we got so busy I failed to replenish the quickly consumed food items. Almost immediately, some of the boys started murmuring, “I can’t believe it, there aren’t any burritos or Hot Pockets in the fridge.” If I have erred, it is because sometimes I have rewarded too quickly or too often.