In my earlier post Why Do I Work So Hard? I talked extensively about conscientious attitude towards my CFO responsibilities. However, time and again I find myself worrying about matters, which are not really under my direct control: lazy marketing people, self-serving sales force, inept operations, and (again and again) bosses who constantly jeopardize their own business.
And it’s not just me. There are a lot of people in my network, who display the same level of care. We frequently become each others’ sounding boards when the angst gets too overwhelming.
So, here we are at lunch. My friend JM ranting about VP of Ops fighting with his girlfriend on the phone for three hours, while the production manager was waiting for him. I am sharing the pains of trying to catch the President to release a $1M wire transfer and his dodging me because “he had enough for the day.”
And it’s not like we don’t have anything else to discuss. Most of my business acquaintances are entertaining individuals. JM, for example, has an incredible sense of humor. I am a theater and foreign cinema fanatic. Somehow, my banking relations are all classical music buffs. We all read Jonathan Franzen and Michael Cunningham.
And yet, we talk about problems at work every chance we get. Most people, when they stop for a second and think about it, get very angry and frustrated with themselves. Frequently at the end of these conversations I hear, ” I don’t own this business. It is not my fuck up. Am I supposed to butt in on other people’s responsibilities? Why do I even care?“
Me? I don’t get frustrated about my caring so much. And I tell my concerned peers that they shouldn’t get upset with themselves either. You see, years ago I figured out that the conscientious working attitude, the ambition to succeed, the striving for merit-based rewards and the care for the entire business – they all go together. They are inseparable qualities and indifference doesn’t fit into the picture. If this is who you are, you will always care.
Moreover, in small business environment, this very combination of qualities is what brought you to where you are. This is what separates you from others. This is what got you into the CFO or Controller chair with the correspondent salary and perks attached, which, in their turn, define your living standards.
So, I’ve created myself a mantra: I CAN’T SURVIVE ON “I DON’T CARE.”
There is a compensation threshold, which, when crossed, brings you into the stage of your professional life, where hardworking people care about the well-being of their employers. I’d say right now it’s somewhere around $70K a year. At $200K a year, you either care a whole lot, or you are a fraud, or you are working for a big-size mastodon. So, ask yourself, “Can I survive on a $70K salary?” And if you can, go for it – not caring is a bliss.
The Frustrated CFO 