Sunset at Carmel Beach

A few years ago, a “40-something” client told me that she was irritated by change in the organization because “I had really planned to coast to retirement, and now I have to ramp up.”

Um, WOW.

A Japanese client recently described the phenomenon of bringing one’s body to work, but not one’s intellect or spirit, as “presentee-ism.”  Although people don’t usually admit it out loud, it seems to me to be rampant.  Especially since the economic downturn, people who might otherwise have switched jobs or retired are biding their time, parked in jobs they would be better off leaving.

In organizations we talk a lot about employee engagement and employee satisfaction, and while these topics are important, it seems to me that we have missed some key points. Employee engagement is not a one-sided proposition. Of course, organizations would do well to understand what fosters employee engagement and to create environments that evoke and support it.

But employees themselves (from frontline staff to CEO) need to stay aware of their own levels of engagement with their work and with their workplaces. All of us have days where we would rather be anywhere but work, but if this is your dominant theme, then you need to change either your attitude or your job.

I repeat:  if you are not fully present in your work, you need to change your attitude or leave.

Before I go further, please know I am aware that:

•People have economic realities that prevent them from easily changing jobs

•Some workplaces are extremely difficult and draining, and cause people to disengage

I am setting these conditions aside for a moment to focus on individual people who decide not to bring their whole selves to work.  When anyone decides to show up in no other way than bodily, they hurt organizations.  Those with their heart and soul in the place have to figure out how to haul the dead wood of the disengaged, on top of doing the work of their team, department, and organization.

Why should the vibrant and soulful be saddled with the disaffected? What impact does it have on organizations, on teams, and on individuals?

If you are reading this and self-identify as a sufferer of “presentee-ism,” please consider leaving your job.  It is not just that you are heavy to carry, but also, that life under these conditions is heavy for YOU to carry. And the heavier it is, the more likely you are to become further deflated and even depressed.

Work is not just something we do, it is a place we bring ourselves to. You can either bring your excited and vibrant self, your whole self–or you can drag your carcass to a place and an occupation that no longer sparks you.  Doing the latter is devastating to all.

We need to remind ourselves that doing the “same old, same old” is NOT the only option in life.  When have YOU felt fully present at work, on a team, or in an organization?