Do you remember your first job? If you”re like roughly half of us in today”s workforce (myself included), you were most likely in your teens, and the job was part-time. And if you”re like me, while you earned a little, you learned a lot.

Although participation in the youth labor force has declined steadily since at least 1989 (see this white paper compiled by Patrick J. Holwell, of the Arapahoe-Douglas Workforce Center in Denver), those early part-time after-school and summer jobs do much to build valuable job and personal skills that will be deployed to even greater use later in life. As leaders of very young workers, we mustn’t underestimate the influence of that first job, and our roles in shaping young people”s view of the world of work.

From the ages of 16 to 20, I worked as a “student assistant” at the Regency Square Branch of the Jacksonville Public Library. Yesterday, the branch held a celebration of its 40th anniversary, and someone was thoughtful enough to put my name on the invitation list. The picture accompanying this post shows yours truly, flanked on either side by two of my first bosses (including my first-ever job interviewer), joined by a couple of others from my library days.

What a great job it was. But not so much for the duties we performed, which were less about literature than inventory management. And, at $1.60 an hour, it sure wasn”t the money. So what was it that kept me there, and engaged, for 4 years? It was the same things that keep your employees, of all ages, engaged today. While much – indeed VERY much – has shifted in the workplace since the late ”70”s, the fundamentals of engagement have remained rock-solid.

Good leadership. My bosses probably covered very little about leadership and human motivation in their Master of Library Science programs in graduate school, but somehow, they knew how to treat people.

These professionals also taught me about showing up on time, properly attired; keeping up with my name badge; looking for ways to help others when my work appeared to be caught up; the fact that I was not indispensable, and that my job security depended, in large measure, on my performance; finding creative ways to help customers; and a host of other valuable life lessons.

Meaningful work. There”s nothing particularly exciting about sorting and shelving books (our number one function) and our bosses knew that. So, they were careful to season our days with as much variety as possible – a few hours of shelving, followed by an hour of customer contact at the front desk, a special project, or maybe running the projector for the classic movies we  showed (something the geekier ones of us truly relished.) They were also careful to point out how our work enabled our branch to be the top performer in the library system, and how that affected our budget, which in turn affected the number of part-time hours distributed to our location.

Just rewards.  As city employees, we weren”t eligible for incentive bonuses, and the librarians didn”t exactly go around handing out 5 dollar bills to the student who shelved the most books accurately in an hour, but they did know what motivated us – each of us – individually. In other words, they subscribed to the notion that, when it comes to rewards, one size fits one. Our most effective incentives came in the form of work assignments, both hours and duties. They knew that my least favorite task was sorting incoming books, and that I much preferred working the checkout desk. Some of my friends wanted only enough hours to pay for gas and date money; others wanted to work as much as possible. We quickly learned that the quality of our work seemed to have a direct relationship to our goals. If ever I slacked off, my next week”s hours would be cut, and those hours would be spent – you guessed it – sorting the 800”s down to 6 Dewey Decimal places.

A good “fit”. The library gang was a diverse lot that eventually chose wildly varying career paths, to include: nurse, art appraiser, auto mechanic, two-star general in the US Army, and even a librarian. But, at the time, most of us “fit” the job, and the job fit us. It fit our temperament and our interests. It worked with our school, extracurricular, and social schedules. Of course if provided some income, but also, not insignificantly, given the age group, a great social environment. I”m still in touch with many from those days so long ago; a few remain my best friends today; one introduced me to my wife.

This simple library job, my first job, remains a good demonstration of what we”ve always known about employee engagement. Compensation is secondary to other factors: good leadership, the chance to do meaningful work, rewards that provide a good incentive, and a job that just “fits”.

Those things don”t change.

Richard Hadden is a leadership speaker, author, and consultant who helps organizations improve their business results by virtue of a focused, engaged, capably led workforce. He and Bill Catlette are the authors of the popular “Contented Cows” leadership book series, and Rebooting Leadership. Their newest book, Contented Cows STILL Give Better Milk, published by John Wiley & Sons, is now available. Learn more about them and their work at ContentedCows.com.

Whether you are a leader or a follower, your performance (and level of enjoyment) in life hinge a lot on your world-view, specifically whether you see the glass as being half full or half empty. We tend to get what we expect to get.

Nowhere was this better evidenced than in a too quietly covered event in the recent Olympic Games. Common sense dictates that qualification to compete in Olympic track and field events involves a great deal of skill, preparation, and God-given ability. Oscar Pistorius, a South African sprinter, didn’t just compete, he finished eighth in the 400 meter dash semifinal event. But Oscar isn’t just any athlete. He was the first double amputee to compete in the Olympic Games, ever.

Some might say that Oscar came up a bit short in the God-given ability department, by virtue of his disability. But they would be wrong. Oscar doesn’t see it that way. According to him, ‘My mother used to tell us, “Carl, put on your shoes. Oscar, put on your prosthetic legs.” So I grew up not thinking I had a disability. I grew up thinking I had different shoes.” Talk about optimism…

Those of us who are in leadership roles can only turn in Oscar-like performances if we are willing to see the possibilities in people ahead of their shortcomings, to see them as having “different shoes.” This is anything but happy talk. Rather, it is an expressed preference for valuing possibilities ahead of limitations.

Managers who choose to see their people as real, pulsating, idea generating, responsibility-taking teammates will find themselves surrounded by more focused, fired up workers, and will outperform their less optimistic peers by a wide margin over time.

Those are my thoughts. Your opinion is welcome, as always.

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A pathfinder in the arena of leadership and employee engagement, Bill Catlette is a seminar leader, keynote speaker, and executive coach. He helps individuals and organizations improve business outcomes by having a focused, engaged, capably led workforce. He is co-author of the Contented Cows leadership book series, and Rebooting Leadership. For more information about Bill, his partner Richard Hadden, and their work, please visit their website, or follow him on Twitter at http://twitter.com/ContentedCows

Of all the reasons my wife may have had for marrying me nearly 25 years ago, being ultra handy around the house is not among them.

That fact notwithstanding, last weekend I decided to pressure wash our house. The all-white structure has a large expanse of siding at the back that faces due north, and is therefore hospitable territory to a gray-green coating of mold and algae. Although the heat index was in the triple digits, I was actually looking forward to the task. And I knew why.

It’s the same reason that I actually enjoy mowing the lawn, even though there’s a fully capable onsite teenager, who would do it more often if I’d let him. The reason I like these tasks so much, and eschew others, like laundry and disinfecting toilets? Instant gratification.

Every swipe of the pressure washing nozzle was like applying graffiti in reverse. Expend labor – see result. It was magnificent! And enough to keep me at it in less than ideal conditions until the job was done. At which point I stood at the back of the house gazing up and admiring my handiwork.

We all need at least a little instant gratification at work, too. A strong need to know that what we do makes a difference. Some jobs come with this feature onboard. With others, this feeling of accomplishment is more elusive.

If you lead others, and help manage and design their work, here’s an assignment:

• Pick one job you manage and assess it for instant gratification potential. Does it happen often, occasionally, rarely, or never?
• If the answer is rarely or never, change that. Build into the job at least the occasional opportunity to see the fruits of the labor that goes into it.
  • Give back office people some direct customer contact.
  • Balance sales professionals’ account portfolios of tough customers with a few easier sales.
  • If the task is an intermediate step in a process, let them at least see the finished product and have a clear understanding of the part they played in it.
  • Make sure no job is all frustration – no fulfillment.
• Once you’ve had a little immediate gratification with this experiment, do the same with the other jobs under your direction.

We all need to see the needle move from time to time. It’s part of what keeps us going.

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Richard Hadden is a leadership speaker, author, and consultant who helps organizations improve their business results with a focused, engaged, capably led workforce. He and Bill Catlette are the authors of the acclaimed business classic Contented Cows Give Better Milk, and Contented Cows MOOve Faster, and the brand new book Rebooting Leadership, written with Meredith Kimbell. Learn more about them and their work at ContentedCows.com.

For 15 years, I’ve been getting my cars’ oil changed at a little shop near my home. It’s not one of those 10-minute lube places; but while they do all kinds of car repair, they’ve always specialized in oil changes and related services. Without exception, every visit has been attended by the manager, a fellow named Tim. I had begun to think the guy never takes a day off, or a vacation.

The first time I went, in 1996, Tim took down all manner of information on me, my car, and my fluid preferences. Since then, he’s always greeted me, “Hello, Mr. Hadden,” and then without my needing to tell him or his staff anything at all, serviced my car, and handed me the keys a half-hour or so later.

Today, there was no Tim. “Oh, great,” I thought. “I’m going to have to tell them my name, and I hope they’ve got everything on file, so I don’t have to go through all that again.”

Instead, the counter attendant, who saw me drive up, said, “Thank you. Have a seat in the lobby, and we’ll have you out of here in a half-hour or so.” I kept thinking, “But aren’t you going to ask me my name, or what I want done, or what kind of oil I like?” I fired up my laptop, answered some emails, and 30 minutes later, he said, “Mr. Hadden, you’re ready.”

So I asked, “How did you know me? And how did you know my car? And where’s Tim?”

“Tim’s on vacation,” he said. “We plugged in your license plate number, and I saw that you’ve been coming here since 1996. You’ve had this car since ’08, and I see the kinds of fluids we’ve been using in it. And it looks like your wife’s car should be due for an oil change pretty soon.”

For years, Bill and I have been saying, in books, speeches, and seminars, “Forget about ‘empowering’ people; instead, ‘enable’ them to do their best work, and their job satisfaction will go through the roof.”

Pro-Lube, on Library Road in Jacksonville, has done just that. I expect (and receive) this from Kimpton Hotels, for example. But from my neighborhood lube joint? It really is like the theme from “Cheers” suggests, that people like to go “where everybody knows your name.”

Meanwhile, my cable company makes me punch in my phone number twice, and when I finally get a human being on the line (in about the same amount of time as it takes to get my oil changed), that person asks me, again, for my phone number.

The point is simple. Good leaders are constantly looking for ways, through their systems, policies, and procedures, to make their people look good in the eyes of customers.

Right now, stop and figure out a way to this for your business.

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Richard Hadden is a leadership speaker, author, and consultant who helps organizations improve their business results by creating a great place to work. He and Bill are the authors of the acclaimed business classic Contented Cows Give Better Milk, and Contented Cows MOOve Faster, and the brand new book Rebooting Leadership. Learn more about them and their work at ContentedCows.com.

Title: Receptionist/Member Services Specialist.

Job: Making Magic Moments.

Margaret Atter joined ClubCorp 29 years ago, and has been serving members at the company’s University Club, a private city club in Jacksonville, Florida for the last 27 of those years.

An Extra Miler, in the true sense, Margaret personifies Discretionary Effort, or “OOMPH!”, as we call it in our book, Contented Cows Moove Faster.

Last week, Margaret was recognized by the North Florida Hotel and Lodging Association, with its Rose Award, in the category of Guest Services – Private Clubs. The Rose Award is the top award for service excellence in the hospitality industry in this region. She was nominated by her club manager, Hank Carrico, based on her years of remarkably excellent service delivery – service that is evidenced by more than 1,300 positive comments made to management about Margaret over the course of just the last ten years or so.

Here’s just one example of the kind of Extra Miler service that Margaret coordinates, on a routine basis, for University Club members. Not long ago, a member hosted a birthday dinner for the daughter of friends. The honoree was born with Down Syndrome, and the occasion was her 40th birthday. Margaret said, “Let’s make this event really special.” She organized special decorations for the party’s table, had the club staff sign an oversized birthday card for the woman, and arranged for her favorite meal – chicken fingers and fries – which isn’t exactly on the University Club’s regular menu. At the end of the dinner, the birthday girl put her head on her mom’s shoulder, and through tears, said, “This is the best birthday I’ve ever had.”

Magic Moments. It’s part of ClubCorp’s avowed mission – creating Magic Moments for their members and their guests. Margaret told me, “I love this job. Service is what I do. It’s all I’ve ever done. I get a kick out of taking care of our members. I love making memories.”

Have you got “Margarets” in your organization? If so, take a lesson from Hank, and the rest of the team at ClubCorp and the University Club. Hire people with a passion for service (like Margaret); give them a clear, compelling mission (like Making Magic Moments); give them the tools and latitude to do the job (like serving chicken fingers instead of filet mignon); support and reward them when they go above and beyond (like Hank did in nominating Margaret to be among the 250 people considered for the Rose Award); and then get out of their way. Because they’re comin’ through to knock the socks off your customers!

Richard Hadden is a leadership speaker, author, and consultant who helps organizations improve their business results by creating a great place to work. He and Bill are the authors of the acclaimed business classic Contented Cows Give Better Milk, and Contented Cows MOOve Faster, and the brand new book Rebooting Leadership. Learn more about them and their work at ContentedCows.com.