When Chennai was affected by floods in December 2015, there were scores of volunteers who jumped into the fray and selflessly contributed to the relief efforts. I know people from varied walks of life who worked day and night in relief and rescue work. This was celebrated on social media and even a few mainstream media acknowledged the importance of volunteers who were making a difference.
These real life heroes ranged from an actor, a radio jockey and corporate professionals to auto drivers and fishermen. Videos of people fighting with local bullies to ensure that the food reached the flood affected people instead of being hijacked went viral on social media. Without any exception all these hard working volunteers were focused on the task at hand: provide the best possible rescue and relief to the affected people.
On the other hand, there were also people who were busy sharing pictures of themselves handing out a few food packets which invited more criticism than applause.
Corporate parallel
This same behaviour is seen in many organisations. There are people who do very little work but indulge in a lot of self promotion. They are busy trying to network with the “right” people and cozying up with the bosses. When they are entrusted with any task, it tends to be passed on to someone else with an excuse. Such people also try and lean on somebody else’s efforts to get the job done. This can be frustrating for people who are professional and focus on giving their very best. Unfortunately, the former tend to be successful in the short term. But such people can never build a sustainable and successful track record in the long term.
Abraham Lincoln said: “You can fool all the people some of the time, and some of the people all the time, but you cannot fool all the people all the time.”
This is the reality of life. And it is particularly relevant in today’s environment of lightning-fast information dissemination.
A simple validation of the fact that only performance counts, is the shares and likes on Facebook for those who actually did meaningful work during relief efforts and those who did not.
No one posts pictures of routine, day-to-day work. However, good work and performance will always be noticed and remembered. The results achieved will speak far more eloquently than any self-promotion.
Having said that, self-promotion is not bad and is definitely required. But it should be done in a limited manner and only when backed by performance.
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