Employees vs. bosses: Who supports whom!

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As a salesperson, do you rely on your customers for your income, or on your boss? Do you understand that? Even if you are the boss, do you know who you rely on for your income? Have you ever been involved in channel management? The boss is an employee, and employees are also bosses – it’s important to help the boss understand the employees and vice versa. First and foremost, there’s the issue of salary; this isn’t something to be embarrassed about discussing. It’s only fair that those who put in effort get corresponding rewards, which is in line with the principles of a market economy. However, the contradiction here is precisely the most prominent one; bosses always wonder, what do you use to prove your market value? That is of course performance; in other words, you need to do your job well first, and I certainly won’t treat you unfairly – a raise or promotion won’t be a problem. On the one hand, most employees think, what will you use to motivate me? It is difficult for me to give my best effort in work without basic safeguards. The basic salary you offer is high enough; I will definitely do my best. Let’s be practical: pay out real money on a monthly basis, and avoid those gimmicks where you’re promised something in return just for working hard. II. Owners’ long-term interests vs. employees’ short-term interests: In the course of business operations, as managers, owners must take a holistic view and possess a long-term strategic perspective. To put it more vividly, they need to be able to envision how the market might develop in three years’ time. In contrast, employees have much simpler thoughts; they only want results and tangible benefits, seeking the performance outcomes that the market can provide within three months. For example, in a sales process, sales staff on the front line can come up with numerous promotional tactics; the main goal of these is to boost sales in the short term, thereby demonstrating the value of their work and securing corresponding benefits. But very rarely is consideration given to the impact and damage that these short-term promotional activities have on the entire market over the coming periods of time. The boss always has to consider the sustainability of market development and the solidity of the foundational work, so suggestions from employees regarding short-term market actions naturally do not meet the boss’s approval. III. Boss: What resources do you have? VS Employee: What resources can you offer me? In the process of recruitment and applying for jobs, bosses select employees by examining their basic information, educational background, and work experience in order to assess their capabilities ； Employees are the resources of a company, and their value lies primarily in their abilities. What matters to managers is what abilities those employees possess, in other words, what resources they have at their disposal. Employees, on the other hand, consider factors such as the company environment, corporate culture, and working conditions in order to determine what resources they might be able to access in their future work. In other words, the boss can provide me with those resources. IV. Boss: What kind of environment can you change? VS Employee: What kind of environment can you provide? The internal environment of each company varies; even in companies that are generally performing well, there are always certain areas with problems and shortcomings. Many employees tend to attribute the issues that arise at work to these areas, repeatedly telling their bosses that these problems are holding them back and causing various accidents. In short, the environment provided by the boss is problematic. As the boss, how could he not be aware of this issue? Surely you know that it’s completely useless to tell the boss this. What the boss wants is not to be told what he already knows, but rather to be informed about how you plan to solve the problem, so as to change and improve certain conditions in the environment. V. The boss is the discoverer vs. the employee is the talented individual – Regardless of whether they are suitable for higher-level positions, everyone wants to get promoted to prove their worth. But how do you “climb up”? The bosses think that you should make an effort on your own and step forward to show me. Many employees, on the other hand, hope that their companies will proactively create a favorable learning and working environment for them, removing obstacles to their growth, and that their managers will act as mentors who can recognize their potential and help to develop it. Business owners hope to see their subordinates proactively show them the market work they are carrying out, so that they can become aware of the ‘quality assets’ available and the efforts they are making. Unfortunately, in real life, many employees are quite “afraid” of their supervisors’ inspections, thinking to themselves, “I really hope the boss doesn’t come and check my work on the market.” And so, opportunity after opportunity is lost in this way. One day, the boss will realize that there’s no \"activity\" from your end and think that things aren’t working well, considering replacing you; while you wonder why the boss can’t see all the hard work I’m putting in. In this way, the seeds of mutual misunderstanding are sown little by little. VI. Boss: Solving problems vs. Employees: Doing the actual work. The boss’s focus should be on determining the overall direction and securing necessary resources. As for breaking down strategies into tactics and turning those tactics into actions, it is necessary to assign people to carry out these specific tasks – those repetitive and tedious tasks that require someone to take care of them. In short, the boss hires employees to solve problems. Of course, a plan is just that – a plan – while facts are facts. Things in this world don’t always proceed as planned; there are too many interfering factors, unexpected events, and sudden changes, not to mention the fast-paced and highly competitive business world. What if something goes wrong? What the boss needs is a way of thinking to solve problems; employees who are responsible for carrying out these tasks must provide this way of thinking to the boss. Meanwhile, employees believe that they joined the company to carry out instructions, and when problems or complications arise, their first reaction is to look for faults in the products, in the company, or in various other aspects. Then, efforts are made to transfer the problem or escalate it, level by level, until it reaches the boss; as a result, most of what employees respond with to their boss are various excuses and reasons. It made the boss so angry that he slammed the table and kicked the stools, shouting, “What on earth am I doing by bringing you useless idiots here! ! ! ! ” VII. The boss’s proactive new directions vs. employees’ negative complaints In the boss’s own circle, there are mostly other bosses as well – like birds of a feather flock together. Only those who are successful can be called bosses. Every successful boss has his own story of success and examples to follow; many of them also have visions for the future, along with new ideas and innovations. In short, they are proactive and full of hope. Having spent time in this circle for so long, one inevitably agrees with and approves of such a positive approach to thinking. *Get used to positive thinking about the future and development*. Get used to it. Due to their age and lifestyle, employees tend to be in circles of similar people, which means they hear more complaints as well – things like the boss being stingy or the market being difficult to work in. Having heard it so often, one naturally starts to identify with certain complaints; accustomed to thinking in a negative way about things, one gradually begins to overlook many opportunities to actively change the environment and working methods. Summary: The boss goes left, the employees go right – different views between bosses and employees VS the solution: putting oneself in the other’s shoes. As long as there are enterprises, there will always be bosses, and of course there will also be employees. The era when employees were the owners of enterprises is over; no one anymore proclaims that they are the masters of the enterprise and strives to contribute to its development with a sense of ownership. Today’s bosses and employees are always a contradictory pair, remaining opposed to each other yet complementing one another; they differ greatly yet are closely connected. In the author’s view, the main difference between the two is not their status, but rather their different ways of thinking. Thinking determines actions, actions determine outcomes, and outcomes determine status. The key lies in the way the brain is used for thinking. The vast majority of people tend to consider issues from their own personal interests perspective, that is, from an egoistic standpoint; this is something that everyone must admit, whether they are bosses or employees. What differs is how each party views this structure of interests – what the extent of those interests is, whether they are focused on the long term or the short term. So, within a company’s environment, what are some typical differences in understanding between bosses and employees? Empathy is the key to solving problems. People tend to forget their memories of such sensations. Children who are often beaten or scolded by their parents or teachers as kids think that things will be different when they grow up, but once they themselves become parents or teachers, they are likely to opt for the simplest form of management, which is through beating and scolding. Many employees, while working for others, think about how they would treat their staff well if they were the boss. But once they become bosses themselves, they pretty much forget that, and instead start observing how other bosses treat their employees, learning from them. If an employee who has become a manager can still think from the perspective of an employee, it is certainly beneficial for effective management and communication with the staff. By the same logic, if employees can start to think from their boss’s perspective and viewpoint, it will also **help improve** their way of organizing their work and communicating with their bosses. It’s difficult to get bosses to consider things from the employees’ perspective; many bosses also feel that they don’t need to do so. This means that employees need to be more proactive and constantly force themselves to think in terms of what the boss would think. Only then can it effectively help you understand your boss’s way of thinking. As the old saying goes, your mindset determines your actions, and your actions determine your outcomes. 　　Anyway, most bosses, as role models of success, naturally have their extraordinary qualities. Whether starting from scratch or building the business within a family-owned workshop, the owner must put in far more effort than the employees. This conflict between the owner and the employees stems from an asymmetry in understanding. Every conflict has some methods for alleviating and resolving it; although the processes may vary, the goal is always to achieve a win-win outcome for both parties. The relationship between managers and employees, which is also a kind of conflicting relationship, can be handled in the same way as all other conflicts. We need to change our perspective to understand each other’s thoughts and actions, and consider both the commonalities and differences between the two sides. By doing so, it is possible to find common ground amidst the conflicts, fulfill the aspirations of both parties, and promote the healthy development of the company. Everyone is welcome to come and engage in lively discussions! Who exactly supports whom?