Under-worked

Last week I ran into a guy who describes himself as under-worked and overpaid. Yes, under-worked and over-paid. What else could I say but, "tell me more about your condition."

The prominent local property-owner has built a property empire on determination, ambition and the ability to work harder than everyone else. He has acquired a lot of property and chances are if you have shopped in a shopping mall in Adelaide you have shopped in one of the properties he owns. His net-worth is immense, and good luck to him I say! He has worked for it.

I have known this gentleman for about 8 years or so and have spoken to him about life, business, getting old, social media, sports and just about everything in between but this particular meeting was the first in which I had ever heard him refer to himself as under-worked or over-paid. Let me explain his comment.

We had been talking about having the right people for the job around you and how critical that can be for business success, and in fact life-success also. He has spent his whole life working hard at building the right relationships, ensuring that he's working with the right people, employing the right people and surrounding himself with people more capable than himself in their chosen, or specific field of expertise. He says that has been the key: Surround himself with people smarter than himself. I think Richard Branson of Virgin says the same thing.

So this fellow has a tight-knit group of people around him doing the bulk of his work leaving him free to innovate, procrastinate, ruminate...Well, he can do whatever it is he wants. Put simply he is pulling back from his business ventures leaving them in the capable hands of others. I have a lot of time for this guy and every time we meet I get a lot of value, last week was no exception. His statement, under-worked and over-paid was a tongue in cheek statement designed to indicate the importance of having the right people around you: Positive influencers, capable advisors and trusted team members. You see, he can leave things to them and have little to do in his business.

I walked away wondering how I could become under-worked and over-paid in life. I don't mean in my working life, I mean life in general. You see, we all have people around us that add or detract value, people who cause us to work harder, or make life easier. There's also people who take and other's who give to us.

I wonder how great it would be if every relationship we have in life was easy and comfortable; Relationships in which there were no drama's or angst and didn't make us feel drained, overwhelmed or unhappy. These relationships could take small amounts of effort to maintain and could repay us with a bountiful harvest. I think if every relationship I had was like that I would feel under-worked and over-paid.

Instead, we complicate our lives through gossip, jealousy, pride and ego; We work hard at those things and are under-paid for that hard work. We don't reap a bountiful harvest from them, we don't fill our coffers to bursting point with payback from these things. No, they force us into being over-worked and under-paid in life, emotionally I mean.

I think it would be an interesting experiment to focus on eliminating ego, pride, jealousy, hate and all the other negative emotions we work so hard at nurturing in life and relationships. We could replace them with hubris, understanding, caring, manners, generosity and a myriad of positive emotions and actions...

...A pipe dream I know, an impossibility in this crazy world. Still wouldn't it be an interesting experiment to run for...Well, forever. Alas, I think there's little hope for that.

As for my client...Well, he is spending his time supporting several charities in a big way, not just financially, and is busy being under-worked and over-paid for his efforts, which I know are considerable. He tells me his life has never been more rewarding. The pay he receives from his charitable and philanthropic works are the best rewards he's had in his life. He doesn't see it as work so feels under-worked and doesn't want anything in return so feels over-paid through the gratitude from the people and organisations he supports. What a great way to be.