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Don Dodge wrote this fantastic post about how Google is consistently able to to achieve the seemingly unachievable.  The reasons he lists are not related to talent, technology, or marketing.  Dodge states that Google’s continued success is because of the way they set goals and measure results.  Their methods, however, are not unique to their business or industry — they are universal and everyone should learn them by heart.

The first thing Dodge mentions Google does is set impossible short term expectations.  It’s important to set short term goals so that people don’t forget about them and it’s even more important to set overly-ambitious goals so that people are motivated to strive towards them.  As a manager, if you set high expectations for your employees, you’ll be surprised how many of them actually step up.  Most people like to be  challenged and when you give them that kind of vote of confidence, they will work their hardest to not let you down.  All of a sudden, you will see the true potential of what you they are capable of.

Google also believes it’s important to encourage seeking options, not accepting failure.  There are managers out there that believe in training people in how to perform a specific task.  If there comes a situation, however, when that task does not yield the desired result, the person doing it will probably stop working, feeling lost.  On the other hand, if you train people to achieve certain goals and encourage them to explore options to find the best method to achieve them, you will create an atmosphere in which people feel comfortable being creative but do not feel comfortable failing.

Achieving 65% of the impossible is better than 100% of the ordinary.  I think this is such a great quote.  In order to achieve extraordinary results, you have to create a company culture in which it’s better to get a little past half way towards an incredible goal than to meet a modest one.

Finally, after you set all these high goals for your company and its people, you need to make sure you that you reward outstanding performance, both monetarily and otherwise.  Dodge writes:

Google attracts the best people in the industry for many reasons, maybe most importantly because they give people the resources and support they need to achieve the impossible. Financial rewards are significant, but they are not the primary motivator. Working with the best people in the world and achieving greatness is the ultimate reward.

The major point here is that in order to expect greatness, you need to support people in their quest towards it.  Give them help when they need it; space when they don’t.  Provide access to as many resources as you or they believe are necessary.  Then, once the impossible has been achieved, make sure to reward accordingly, showing people that their hard work is in fact very appreciated.

None of these concepts are revolutionary, but it’s always the little things we take for granted that separate good companies from great ones.  The difference between Google and most other large and growing tech firms is not just it’s algorithm and technology — it’s the company’s attitudes towards people and achievement.

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I’m writing this post even though it has only tangential relation to blog topic because this actually raised enough emotion in me to write about.  There are a LOT of resources for entrepreneurs because there are a lot of very experienced people, like VC’s and former entrepreneurs, who actually enjoy giving back to the startup community.  However, not all the information is applicable to most circumstances.  Martin Zwilling’s post about the “Missteps of Entrepreneurs” is one such item.  While I respect and agree with a lot of Zwilling’s other commentary, this one upsets me because it lists many of the facets that make entrepreneurs entrepreneurs as mistakes.

Such as:

• Not leaving your day job until your startup has revenue.  So many VC’s have said that one the the signs to them that an entrepreneur will succeed is his complete dedication to the startup.  If you’re working 9-5 and only after, in the wee hours of the night, doing work on your startup, you’re not fully committed.  Yes, it’s true that people who are married with children must think about providing for their family first–again showing that no rule is universal–but a single person in his 20′s or 30′s should have no problem chucking it all for a venture they want wholeheartedly to succeed.
• Overestimating yourself. Starting a company from scratch that will actually a) do something meaningful and b) provide you with a living is fracking terrifying and not the least bit easy.  The only way people take the plunge is with a huge burst of confidence and a, “I can DO this” attitude.  The below quote from Zwilling’s post is the reverse and quite negative and discouraging.

Search consultants say that many job seekers have an unrealistic view of their skills, their prospects, and their culpability. If you have had problems with several companies, you may be part of the problem. That part will be amplified in any startup, since you are now the company, so the blame stops with you.

Ouch, Martin.  This is the reason why so many talented stay miserably in place, because people tell them that if they’re unhappy working for everyone else at every other company, there’s got to be something wrong with them.  Yes, I suppose there is: they should be working/building for themselves. Of course, that is not to say that all people that hate their jobs should quit and start their own business; I just want to raise the awareness that advice like that should not just be taken at first glance.

Great post, Martin.  Don’t take any of this personally.  I think you’re a great advisor and have lots of great feedback for entrepreneurs.  I just want to make sure you’re not inadvertently discouraging them.

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As mentioned in the previous post, because you spend such a great part of your day at work, it’s understandable and almost expected that you would make friends with your co-workers.  That’s all well and good and no one is saying that this is not allowed, but because work is a very delicate social environment, one must be mindful of the difference between being friendly and being counter-professional.

What is office-friendly?

• You and your select co-worker friends going out for a drink after work
• You and your co-workers meeting up for a tea break at 3pm in the lunch room every day for 15 minutes
• You buying a birthday cake for a co-worker and bringing it into the office and inviting your department and the birthday person’s department for the surprise
• You finding out that a co-worker had her baby and forwarding the info and pictures to all her friends and her group at work.

What is just bad office etiquette?

• You throw a birthday surprise for your friend colleague in one of the firm’s conference rooms but don’t invite anyone but your bffs at work.
• You finding out your co-worker had her baby and only forwarding the email with the baby pics to your office friends, not hers.
• Gossiping or noticeably whispering with a few people when others can clearly see that you are.
• Only pulling people you like into projects, regardless of who’d be best for them.

Basically, the difference between one and the other is that the first is being friendly but the second is being cliquey.

Don’t kid yourself — when you’re cliquey, everyone sees and understands that and thinks you’re a 5 year old instead of a professional.  Cliquey-ness is also the most surefire way of making employees outside the inner circle of trust feel left out…because they are.  It’s also a great way to lose employees because, guess what, no one wants to be where they’re not wanted.

So, next time you bring cookies into the office and only offer them to your friends, remind yourself to grow up.  You want to be friends with your co-workers? Great! Do it outside of work.  While you’re at work, however, you can’t show any preferential treatment.

If you’re sitting there saying you’ve never done this, stop and think.  You probably have without noticing it, since it comes naturally to favor your friends.  Just mind yourself.

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There are some firms who think that employees are going to stay put right now because they’d have a hard time finding other employment.  While that may be generally true and people are reluctant, these are the reasons why I would willingly quit my job, even in a bad economy:

• My compensation does not match what I think I contribute — if I automated all your previously-manual processes, work 14 hour days to fill the role of another employee you let go, and fundamentally changed the way you do business and you only pay me the “market average” with nothing but a subsistence level raise every year, peace out.
• I hate my job but it consumes all my time, leaving me none to do the things I love — I’m fine working ridiculous hours if what I wake up every morning (after a small amount of sleep, obviously) and can’t wait to go to work.  If, however, I have a soul-less, meaningless job and am forced (by sheer volume of work) to work the majority of the day, that means I spend most of the day doing something I hate, with no time to do something I love.  If I don’t get to do the things that make me happy because I have to do the things that make me miserable, I’m not staying for much longer.
• It’s obviously a dead end job — most people take a job for the opportunity moreso than for the money.  If it’s been a number of years and there’s no opportunity to be found and there’s none that you can create for yourself no matter how hard you try, it’s time to move on (hopefully to a place with actual opportunity).  Not many people are going to be satisfied doing the same exact job for decades.  Definitely not me.
• I cannot envision myself working there for the next several years given a good economy and I’m therefore only working for a paycheck — I don’t know about the rest of you, but if I’m only working for the money (as opposed to money and personal fulfillment), I feel like I’m selling my soul.  Though I might need the money, there’s got to be something out there that is not going to make me feel like devil spawn.
• Everyone keeps telling me I’m really valuable but I keep not getting promoted – basically, if my employers are all talk and no action, I’m going to feel like they’re playing me for a fool.  If I’m so valuable, show me the money … or title.  If not, I’m going to find someone who will actually appreciate me.
• How far you get in the firm is positively correlated to how frequently you go drinking with the bosses — I’m a huge believer in networking and it’s power to get you places. But there’s a difference between great networking and taking shots with your boss in a dark club at 4 am after the company party.  Or rather, being promoted because you’re the first person your boss thinks of (because you held her hair back after that bad tequila experience).  I’m not a big drinker, so to me, that kind of seems like discrimination.
• If I’m never in the know about opportunities and goings-on in the firm – If I find out about projects after they’re done, if the sexy projects are always given to the same set of 3 people, I’m going to feel like an outsider.  I want to be an insider.
• Would never invite anyone I work with to my house — if I don’t respect or like the people I work with, I’m not going to be happy working here.  Considering how much time of your day you spend at work, your co-workers are like your second family, so they should be family you like spending Christmas with.
• I feel like decisions about my job prospects are made FOR me, not BY me – enough said.

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In asking a friend about how she is getting along with her boss, I received the following response:

“We haven’t gotten into any squabbles recently and I’ve been quietly doing exactly what she asks, making a list of things she asks, and making sure I get every point taken care of, without questioning why she’s asking for some things, even if i see a better way, which is completely, 100% against my nature, but I need the job. “

When my friend says this behavior is atypical for her, that’s a vast understatement.  She is the most straightforward, honest, tell-you-what-she-thinks-even-if-it’s-inappropriate (in a good way…) kind of person I’ve ever met.  The fact that she is keeping mum is a huge development.

The battered state of the economy and the high unemployment rate is changing the way that people look at their jobs and their job security. Fear of pissing off a boss and finding oneself unemployed, which for many families nowadays may mean losing the only source of family income, is forcing people to alter their normal behavior.

This is unfortunate because when you are afraid of saying something negative to your superiors, you are not providing good feedback, which can result in bad decisions being made (because you didn’t speak up to tell others not to make them) and a culture of fear and separatism spreading (because you’re seeing your managers as your adversaries, with the power to possibly ruin you).  And as we all know, fear about something bad happening oftentimes becomes a self fulfilling prophecy anyway.

What can managers do to curb this attitude and behavior?

• Assure employees that it’s business as usual — Reiterate that you understand the state of the economy and that everyone is worried about it but that no one should be afraid of losing their job (even if you’re planning layoffs.  As long as you’re open about it, it won’t feel like a stab in the back).
• Show you value honest feedback — If you approach your subordinates with a “I want to know what YOU think about this project,” and are friendly about it and actually mean it, your employees will feel valued and encouraged to give their real opinion.  Work on creating a culture of openness.

What should subordinates do?

• Stop and think if you’re overreacting — How likely is it that you will actually be fired because you disagree with your managers approach to a problem, strongly believe a manager’s new direction is the wrong one, etc.  Chances are, no one is going to fire you for that (unless you do it often and are obnoxious about it).
• If you’re still scared but want to give your opinion, give a Shit Sandwich — This should work 90% of the time, but again, only if you’re honest.  Don’t make up BS goodness to layer your shit with.  For the other 10% of the time, find another method of giving bad news in a good way.