Books : The Three Signs of a Miserable Job: A Fable for Managers (And Their Employees)

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Author name: Patrick M. Lencioni

: The Three Signs of a Miserable Job: A Fable for Managers (And Their Employees)
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Type of bind: Hardcover
Dewey Decimal Number: 658.3128
EAN num: 9780787995317
ISBN number: 0787995312
Label: Jossey-Bass
Manufacturer: Jossey-Bass
Quantity: 1
Page Count: 272
Printing Date: August 17, 2007
Publishing house: Jossey-Bass
Sale Popularity Level: 3919
Studio: Jossey-Bass



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Product Description:
A bestselling author and business guru tells how to improve your job satisfaction and performance.

In his sixth fable, bestselling author Patrick Lencioni takes on a topic that almost everyone can relate to: the causes of a miserable job. Millions of workers, even those who have carefully chosen careers based on true passions and interests, dread going to work, suffering each day as they trudge to jobs that make them cynical, weary, and frustrated. It is a simple fact of business life that any job, from investment banker to dishwasher, can become miserable. Through the story of a CEO turned pizzeria manager, Lencioni reveals the three elements that make work miserable -- irrelevance, immeasurability, and anonymity -- and gives managers and their employees the keys to make any job more fulfilling.

As with all of Lencionis books, this one is filled with actionable advice you can put into effect immediately. In addition to the fable, the book includes a detailed model examining the three signs of job misery and how they can be remedied. It covers the benefits of managing for job fulfillment within organizations -- increased productivity, greater retention, and competitive advantage -- and offers examples of how managers can use the applications in the book to deal with specific jobs and situations.

Patrick Lencioni (San Francisco, CA) is President of The Table Group, a management consulting firm specializing in executive team development and organizational health. As a consultant and keynote speaker, he has worked with thousands of senior executives and executive teams in organizations ranging from Fortune 500 companies to high-tech startups to universities and nonprofits. His clients include AT&T, Bechtel, Boeing, Cisco, Sams Club, Microsoft, Mitsubishi, Allstate, Visa, FedEx, New York Life, Sprint, Novell, Sybase, The Make-A-Wish Foundation, and the U.S. Military Academy at West Point. Lencioni is the author of six bestselling books, including The Five Dysfunctions of a Team. He previously worked for Oracle, Sybase, and the management consulting firm Bain & Company.

Amazon.com Review:
Patrick Lencioni, renowned business consultant and bestselling author of The Five Dysfunctions of a Team, is on a critical mission: create widespread job satisfaction in a world full of workplace misery. His latest book, The Three Signs of a Miserable Job: A Fable for Managers (And Their Employees), tells the inspiring tale a high-flying, but deeply dissatisfied Chief Executive Officer who ditches the power and perks for career bliss as the manager of a pizzeria! In this unusual and inspiring story, Lencioni convincingly demonstrates how career happiness (or misery) is the direct result of the manager--employee relationship. Patrick Lencioni took the time to tell us about his life-long 'obsession' with job misery, shatter some myths about workplace satisfaction and offer some real advice on how to turn that daily grind into daily fulfillment. --Lauren Nemroff


Some Questions for Patrick Lencioni

Q: Why did you decide to write this book?

A: As a kid, I watched my dad trudge off to work each day and became somewhat obsessed with the notion of job misery. Somewhere along the line, I came to the frightening realization that people spend so much time at work yet so many of them were unfulfilled and frustrated in their jobs. As I got older, I came to another realization--that job misery was having a devastating impact on individuals, and on society at large. It seemed to me that understanding the cause of the problem, and finding a solution for it, was a worthy focus for my career.


Q: What exactly is a miserable job?

A:A miserable job is not the same as a bad one. A bad job lies in the eye of the beholder. One person’s dream job might be another person’s nightmare. But a miserable job is universal. It is one that makes a person cynical and frustrated and demoralized when they go home at night. It drains them of their energy, their enthusiasm and their self-esteem. Miserable jobs can be found in every industry and at every level. Professional athletes, CEOs and actors can be--and often are-- as miserable as ditch diggers, janitors and fast food workers.


Q: How prevalent is job misery?

A: Attend any kind of social gathering, anywhere in the country, and talk about work. The stories and anecdotal evidence confirming job misery are overwhelming. Misery spans all income levels, ages and geography. A recent Gallup poll found that 77% of people hate their jobs. Gallup also contends that this ailing workforce is costing employers more than $350 billion dollars in lost productivity.


Q: What is the root cause of job misery?

A: The primary source of job misery and the potential cure for that misery resides in the hands of one individual--the direct manager. There are countless studies confirming this statement, including both Gallup and The Blanchard Companies. Both organizations have found that an employee’s relationship with their direct manager is the most important determinant to employee satisfaction (over pay, benefits, perks, work-life balance etc).

Even employees who are well paid, do interesting work and have great autonomy, cannot feel fulfilled in a job if their managers are not providing them with what they need on a daily or weekly basis.


Q: What are the three signs?

The very first is anonymity, which is the feeling that employees get when they realize that their manager has little interest in them a human being and that they know little about their lives, their aspirations and their interests.

The second sign is irrelevance, which takes root when employees cannot see how their job makes a difference in the lives of others. Every employee needs to know that the work they do impacts someone’s life--a customer, a co-worker, even a supervisor--in one way or another.

The third sign is something I call 'immeasurement,' which is the inability of employees to assess for themselves their contribution or success. Employees who have no means of measuring how well they are doing on a given day or in a given week, must rely on the subjective opinions of others, usually their managers’, to gauge their progress or contribution.


Q: Why don’t managers do these things?

A: As simple as the three signs are, the fact remains that few managers take a genuine interest in their people, remind them of the impact that their work has on others, and help them establish creative ways to measure and assess their performance.


There are a number of reasons. First, many managers think they are too busy. Of course, the real problem is that most of those managers see themselves primarily as individual contributors who happen to have direct reports. They fail to realize that the most important part of their jobs is providing their people with what they need to be productive and fulfilled (a.k.a. not miserable) in their jobs.

The second reason that managers don’t provide their employees with the three things they need is that they simply forget what is was like when they were a little lower on the food chain. They somehow forget how important it was to them when a supervisor took an interest in them, talked to them about why their work really mattered and gave them a means for evaluating their progress.

Finally, many managers don’t do this because they are embarrassed or afraid to try. They fear that their employees will see them as being disingenuous or manipulative, or that by taking an interest in their personal lives they will be stepping into inappropriate territory. It’s almost as though they fail to understand the difference between the interview process (no personal questions allowed!) and the actual work experience (treat people like a full human being).


Q: What can a miserable employee do to improve his or her situation?

A: The very first thing they can do is assess whether their manager is interested in and capable of addressing the three things that are required. And they have to realize that most managers really do want to improve, in spite of the fact that they may seem disinterested.

The second thing miserable employees need to do is help their managers understand what it is they need. If they have a strong relationship with their manager, they can come right out and say it ('You know, it would mean a lot to me if you knew more about who I am and what makes me tick.' or, 'Can you sit down and help me understand why this work I’m doing makes a difference to someone?').

Finally, employees would do well for themselves if they turned the tables and started doing for their managers what they want for themselves. For instance, employees who take a greater interest in the life of their managers are bound to infect them with the same kind of human interest. Similarly, employees who take the time to tell their managers (in a non suck-up kind of way) about the impact they have on their job satisfaction, will likely inspire them to respond in kind.

However, if an employee comes to the conclusion that his or her manager is indeed completely disinterested in helping them find fulfillment in their work, it may well be time to start looking for a new job.


Q: Why do so many professional athletes and entertainers seem miserable in their jobs?

A: In spite of the money they make and the attention they receive from fans and the media, many athletes and entertainers experience one or all of the three signs of a miserable job.

Most professional athletes feel anonymous in their jobs because their coaches and managers dedicate little, if any, time or energy getting to know them personally. I’ve had coaches tell me 'Hey, these guys are professionals and this is a business. They don’t need anything special from me.' Keep in mind that they are referring to young men in their early twenties who are living on their own for the very first time and feel surprisingly alone--even with all the fan attention.

Entertainers are in similar situations, but for them, it is often relevance that suffers. Many actors cannot reconcile their celebrity and wealth with the fact that they see their work as being somewhat unimportant, in terms of impacting the lives of others. Perhaps that’s why so many of them get involved in charitable causes or politics--it gives them a sense of purpose.







Customer Reviews
User popularity level: out of 5 stars

Rated by buyers 4 out of 5 stars - Three Signs of a Miserable Job
This book was a great reminder for me as a manager on what I should be focusing on to keep my staff engaged in the business. Teaching these lessons fable style makes it easier to see the how and why.


Rated by buyers 4 out of 5 stars - Three Signs of a Miserable Job
Author uses a compelling short story to illustrate his ideas. The three "signs", anonymity, irrelevance,and immeasurement speak volumes about the negative impact each can have on our engagement, and gives a simple and powerfull message to all leaders as to where they should be focusing their efforts when leading their teams.


Rated by buyers 4 out of 5 stars - Enjoyed Three Signs
I really enjoyed reading The Three Signs of A Miserable Job and it helped put a lot of things in focus that you might not realize are critical to sucess as a leader. I felt it was so valuable that I purchased two more copies and shared them with my management team.


Rated by buyers 5 out of 5 stars - Being a manager takes more than signing letters & receiving fat checks...
I was wondering whether most managers (especially those who have "a job for life") would follow your advice. Indeed, being in that position takes more than signing letters and receiving fat checks every month. I have been reading your books over and over again. Thank you Mr Lencioni for enlightening my mind!


Rated by buyers 5 out of 5 stars - Don't Strike Out. Buy This Book!
This is a great topic and an easy read. While it is a one-trick book, the topic is so deep and varied that it can fill an entire book. A lot of managerial books that cover a single topic are often shallow and sometimes even fails to offer ways to correct the problems associated with the topic. That is not the case with this book.

The author provides a clear, operational definition of a miserable job. If you have moved around in your career (or not!) you can easily relate to these bad jobs.

I was very glad to see the author lay the bulk of the blame at the manager's feet. This is where it belongs but man. The relationship between the employee and their direct supervisor is one of the most important in that person's life.

The three signs are defined as:

Anonymity - In a recent training class for managers, I asked them to list their subordinates and then to tell me the name of the spouses and name at least one of their children. I struck out. Not a single person could pull this off.

Irrelevance - I am reminded of the two stone cutters. One said his job was hot, dusty and hard. The other enlightened cutter told everyone he was building a cathedral. What a difference between the workers!

"Immeasurement" or not being able to tell if your work is contributing to the sucess of the organization or themselves. For me, an analogy would be given the job of driving a car cross country but not being given a map, fuel gauge or speedometer.

Buy this book if you want to reduce your employee turnover and help with retention. This is right on point and I can highly recommend it. Michael L. Gooch, SPHR - Author of Wingtips with Spurs


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