What do we get paid for and why should that matter?

The Sistine Chapel Ceiling is the hardest single work of art ever accomplished.

The scheme proposed by the pope was for twelve large figures of the Apostles to occupy the pendentives. However Michelangelo negotiated for a grander, much more complex scheme and was finally permitted, in his own words, “to do as I liked”. His scheme for the ceiling eventually comprised some three hundred figures and took four years to execute, being completed in 1512. (Wikipedia)

He signed off with perhaps the toughest client ever before he began. What they agreed on was the overall idea and most importantly on the result – the greatest work of art ever.

He had no idea when we would finish. He did not even know many of the techniques at first – he was a sculptor not a painter. His client went off to wars and nearly died along the way – it was not certain that he would get paid a few times.

But he and the Pope had the best kind of contract. They both knew what this was all going to mean at the end. Julius was not paying a stone mason but a creative person.

So why can’t we do this at work? Most of us get paid as Field Hands doing piece work for the Man.

We get paid to turn up and to do piece work. (Picture source)

For those of us that have jobs, we get paid to turn up and to work within a set of constraints that are driven by a set process. But there is a very loose connection to the work that really has to be done. Of course the model is a factory worker that is doing the same thing every day.

Things are as bad for many contractors. Billable hours is the way. But as anyone who knows anything about programming knows that this is not cotton picking – it is art. You can know the result. Obviously time is a factor. Michelangelo probably did not know at first that this project would take over 4 years and that many of the problems would be because of his client. But he got paid for results and that is what kept it all going for both sides.

Why do we insist on making work into a repeatable mechanical process when it is really about accomplishing larger results?

The price for this limiting view of work is so high.

• Most of the direct costs for employers and employees arise from having to be in a work place between set hours.
• Most of the stresses arise from the conflict that this sets up between work and family. Not having enough control over what we do drives most of the health issues.
• Not being clear about the goal drives most of the waste.

A 2.0 world is technically possible but not as long as we insist of treating all our artists like field hands on piece work.

Why do we still make this the way?

HT to John Tropea who got me going on this topic