This morning, a group of our software engineering interns worked with their mentors and managers to build a wheechair ramp for a local octogenarian. (See The Texas Ramp Project.)
One of the college interns arrived about 15 minutes late, shortly after the ramp building process was explained and the project started.
He says loudly so everyone can hear: “Hi everybody. My name is Mike. I just got here, so I don’t really know what we’re doing. Who can I help?”
He didn’t receive the response he hoped for, so he approached one of the crew leaders. “You have the best tool belt, so I’m thinking you’re someone that can tell me what to do.”
The crew leader gave him a cordless drill and a handful of deck screws and put him to work.
After finishing the assignment a few minutes later, he proclaims: “I’m just standing here! Somebody tell me what to do next!”
For the remainder of the project (the project lasted less than 3 hours), Mike was busy and productive. When someone needed an extra hand to plumb a post, drive a screw, or mark an angle, they shouted, “Hey Mike! Can you give me a hand over here!?!”
In Mike, I see several leading indicators for a bright future:
- He is willing to do whatever it takes
- He aligns himself with the team and objectives
- If he doesn’t know what to do next, he finds a way to find out
- He is tenacious
- He dispatches obstacles effectively
- Once he begins to understand how things work, he self directs
- He contributes high entertainment value and is good with a drill!
With a team of Mikes, you can make anything happen!
-Donny
