Julie Clow - The Work Revolution: Freedom and Excellence for All

Contents

Praise for The Work Revolution

Dr. Clow makes a good case for why we must revolutionize work. Some will resist it (and she shows why ), but those who embrace it (and she shows how ) will be the ones who win in a world where things are turning upside down. Her book provides an inside look at Googles culture as an example of a positively designed workplace that has created phenomenal business success. She draws on her work there to show that companies managed by old-school work systems cannot compete with those who understand the power of a grassroots culture where empowerment is bottom-up rather than top-down. I am convinced that she accurately describes the future state of the successful organization.

Aubrey Daniels, PhD, author of four best-selling books, including OOPS!: 13 Management Practices That Waste Time and Money (and what to do instead)

Dont fight for work-life balance; fight for a work revolution! Julie Clows new book, The Work Revolution , lays out the new rules for success. Packed with self-assessments, case studies, and expert contributions, this book shows all of us the new way to workand livefor greater productivity and less stress. Ive never had so much fun reading a book about work.

Kevin Kruse, coauthor of the New York Times best-seller, We: How to Increase Performance and Profits Through Full Engagement

Looking to massively change your workplace? Julie Clow wants to change all organizations and shows how the power to do so is in your hands. Do your part by following the practical strategies and examples in this book. Your current and future employees will be deeply engaged, results-driven, and happyand, so will you!

Tony Bingham, President and CEO, American Society for Training and Development

We can do it! Julie tackles todays biggest challengeremaking our organizations for the knowledge economywith pragmatic optimism. Filled with ideas and examples, The Work Revolution is a book that will inspire individuals and guide corporations on the critical journey ahead.

Tamara J. Erickson, author of Whats Next, Gen X?: Keeping Up, Moving Ahead, and Getting the Career You Want

The Work Revolution is a crisp and actionable manifesto for designing workplaces and leadership models that will sustain innovation, talent, and learning in these radically changing times. Julie Clow has written a must-read for business leaders, employees, and talent managers worldwide!

Elliott Masie, Chair, The Learning CONSORTIUM

Copyright 2012 by Julie Clow. All rights reserved.

Published by John Wiley & Sons, Inc., Hoboken, New Jersey.

Published simultaneously in Canada.

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Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data:

Clow, Julie, 1974

The work revolution : freedom and excellence for all / Julie Clow.

p. cm.

Includes bibliographical references and index.

ISBN 978-1-118-17205-6 (cloth); ISBN 978-1-118-22681-0 (ebk); ISBN 978-1-118-23984-1 (ebk); ISBN 978-1-118-26454-6 (ebk)

1. Corporate culture. 2. Organizational behavior. 3. Organizational change. 4. Job satisfaction. I. Title.

HD58.7.C56 2012

306.36dc23

2012003555

To my Dad and Mom, for teaching me positive thinking.

To my awe-inspiring big (little) sister, Michele, for being my best friend in life.

And to my beautiful daughter, Danielle, for being brave enough and strong enough to ride the roller coasters with me, and ultimately enjoying the ride.

Preface

Who is your book for?

Whenever I revealed to people that I was writing The Work Revolution , they were curious about my target audience. And every single time they asked, I was caught off-guard.

Well, Id start to say, everyone?

Then I would second-guess myself and give them the answer I believed they were really waiting to hear: leaders and managers, entrepreneurs, organizational development consultants, and so on.

But, in fact, I stand by my original answer. We all work. Even if we dont have formal jobs, we do work of some kind, almost every day.

Self-help books are designed to teach people about themselves, and how to cope in their worlds. Interestingly, in most of these books, work is often a subchapter, or a tangent. In my life, however, work looms very large, both because it defines me and because I devote so much time to it. When I am happy at work, I tend to be happy in life. And when my work is a struggle, it negatively taints my entire outlook and existence. Anyone can relate to being miserable at work, and each of us can stand to improve his or her relationship with work.

Chalk it up to my positive-thinking childhood, but I believe we are capable of finding joy in both our work and play. Thus, I am hereby calling this a work-help book.

Although I might not have all of the answers, in The Work Revolution I share my philosophy and the principles that, cumulatively so far, have come closest to delivering joy in my work existence. This book is about reviving the humanity in our organizations. Its about tapping into the huge potential of these communities, of which we are already a part. If we can get work right, we can get anything right. Right?

Chapter 1

This Thing We Call Work

Once upon a time, long, long ago, we humans made our living working the land. We labored for ourselves, and the effort we put into our work was clearly tied to what we got out of it. If we planted seeds, wed harvest a crop. But life then was tough, often grueling. When things went well, we could see our hard work pay offthough, too often it didnt; droughts and storms and unrelenting cold weather would come along more often than we could bear, wreaking havoc on our crops and destroying all wed worked so hard to create.