Paul Butler | Great Places to Work 

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We often hear people say they love their job, their boss, or their coworkers. Why do we use such an emotive word to describe our work? 

Many people don’t realize that love is both a noun and a verb — it’s also an action word. It’s difficult to love someone if we’re not loved in return; there’s a give and take. From my experience, I’d like to suggest that we sometimes love our work, our boss, or our coworkers not only based on what we receive from them but also on what we give to them. 

Every year, we hear about organizations being rated as “Great Places to Work.” When we dig a little deeper, we can see that these organizations are “loved” because they “love” their workers.  

The attributes of such award-winning organizations are not rocket science. These organizations are deemed to make a positive contribution to the world, pay their people well, create platforms for their employees to grow and contribute ideas.  

Their leadership shows humility and yet delivers results. Speaking of numbers—great places to work share their financial results and educate their employees on how their work impacts these numbers.  

Such organizations intentionally minimize red tape and unleash talent to thrive within their hallways or to work from home when desired. There’s a high degree of trust within such “Great Places to Work.” 

One could say all these attributes are what the organization gives, and employees take. Yet, a remarkable response ensues from employees who feel loved — consequently, they give their very best to the organization, their boss, and their coworkers. The love is reciprocated.  

This might sound like a lot — this talk of “love” and “work” — but I’m sure you agree with me that some organizations just feel different from others. I’d suggest that the difference lies in the amount of love flowing between employer and employee, which benefits us as consumers when it’s at its peak. 

The principle at play here is the Golden Rule — when employees are treated well, they generally reciprocate by treating customers and colleagues well. The late Dr. Stephen Covey said, “Treat your employees how you want them to treat your customers,” and I concur with that paradigm. 

What astounds me even more are those rare individuals who demonstrably show their love for their customers and coworkers, even in organizations deemed “Pretty Mediocre Places to Work.” Why do they give 100% when most coworkers don’t? Why do they provide 5-star, gold-level service when everyone around them is apathetic?  

I have observed such people in various roles, in different organizations, in different parts of the world, and yet they seem to have one thing in common — the love they give is not contingent on what they receive.  

As a big Beatles fan, I recall their song “The End,” where they suggest, “And in the end, the love you take is equal to the love you make.” Relating this to the workplace, on a transactional level, some employees see the world this way — they take because they give. But I believe the very best employees are those who give disproportionately to what they take. 

Such employees don’t view their working world as simply a give and take. They don’t operate on the principle of treating others well because they’re treated well. The love these individuals operate on seems to come from deep within, irrespective of their employment circumstances or external stimuli. Indeed, these are the employees I admire most.  

You see, when organizations fall off the league table of “Great Places to Work” (and they do), the love they demonstrate in their work doesn’t diminish. It seems to me these lovely people have an enduring focus, even in a working world that doesn’t always prioritize love in its fixation on the temporal. 

Paul Butler is a Santa Clarita resident and a client partner with Newleaf Training and Development of Valencia (newleaftd.com). For questions or comments, email Butler at [email protected]. 

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