The post-it reads, “When you go ‘above and beyond’, don’t forget that when you take that away, it will be missed and resented.”
Some days it doesn’t pay to do above and beyond.
Above and beyond means achieving past your job responsibilities.
How the higher ups respond is interesting.
Sometimes they just fold the above and beyond into your normal job responsibilities.
Sometimes they rewrite the job responsibilities to reflect the new job nuances you really weren’t away you were signing yourself up for.
For you only.
Naturally.
Without extra pay or acknowledgement.
And sometimes that is okay.
Some people want to work extra and take extra job roles.
It is in our nature.
But what about the others who don’t have that particular quirk.
There can be resentment on both sides.
Manager’s pet jibe anyone?
Slacker jibe, anyone?
And if the above and beyond isn’t really sustainable and you quit.
It is resented.
That someone, namely you, are not lightening the load of others by going above and beyond.
It is frustrating.
It is a quagmire.
And it makes the ones who go above and beyond tired.
Dispatches from the Evening Shift 