The myth of the independent, diversely-competent, always-together person must be hunted down wherever it still reigns and destroyed once and for all.
It’s destroying more people and all workplace cultures where its lies are still blindly obeyed.
Human beings don’t do life alone.
Human being can’t do life alone.
Fortunately, Tom Rath has taken a look at friendship and work in Vital Friends: The People You Can’t Afford To Live Without.
Would you believe, “that people who have a ‘best friend’ at work are seven times as likely to be engaged in their job?!”
Take note of the eight vital roles Rath asserts we need surrounding us:
1. Builder
2. Champion
3. Collaborator
4. Companion
5. Connector
6. Energizer
7. Mind Opener
8. NavigatorÂ
You don’t have to be a “warm and fuzzy” type to appreciate the value of most of these roles.
This book is an invitation to connect with others in ways you may not yet have considered.
This book may even be a helpful wake-up call to those of us who tend to isolate and go it alone.
Karl’s Library is a weekly column highlighting my favorites from my professional development library. “Always learning” is one of the pillars of my personal mission statement. Explore past columns here.
While people can be trained in skills, informed of required procedures, and be given aggressive goals to achieve, nothing can replace tapping into and empowering their core passions, values and dreams.