All work has dignity, a chance to unleash the virtuoso within

Published on:

11 Jul 2014, 10:22 am

By now hope you've managed to hear my interview with Robin Sharma. It was memorable. Including the part where he talked about the cleaning lady he met at the Didimala Game Lodge who beamed when she told him why she loved her job. As Robin shared: "It reminded me that all work has dignity." Sometimes that reality gets lost in politics. As happened during the platinum mining strike when the ANC's inner core pulled the new Mining Minister out of negotiations, almost hijacking the settlement. Almost keeping hungry miners away from the stopes for even longer.

My good friend, retired broadcaster turned HR-consultant Jerry Schuitema describes someone like Robin Sharma's cleaning lady as a "virtuoso". A person who applies excellence to their work, no matter how humble the occupation. Virtuosos are everywhere. Like Hezekiel, whose area of the parking garage was always spotless. So when he was retrenched when his employer lost the contract, we offered him a position and pretty soon he'd graduated from janitor to sound engineer. I agree with Robin Sharma that all work has dignity. And despite what politicians peddle, every single job is "decent". Not just because of the self-respect it brings. It also offers the opportunity to unleash the virtuoso within.