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Indispensable: A quick word on being indispensable

A person getting water from a lake
A quick word on being indispensable

No one is indispensable, so the saying goes, and it’s true.  While losing a really key member of staff might change a function or a process within the firm, if a company has enough traction, it will go on without much trouble.

It’s a lesson we all have to learn.  No matter how much we put into a job, are respected and yes, needed, by everyone around us, when we leave life in the company goes on without us.  We might be missed for a nano-second but it’s very levelling to realise how quickly everyone gets over it.

Make yourself indispensable

There are ways we can try and make ourselves indispensable, and here are what I would consider to be the strongest:

  • Own a skill. Find something that no one else can do and make it yours
  • Own a relationship with a big client, preferably the biggest client
  • Be helpful, be the ‘go-to-guy’ for solutions

I learned this lesson the hard way, and what a swipe to my ego it was.

During my time at one company I was the one everyone called on for presentations, information, advice and all kinds of everything.  I worked like a dog, supported the junior staff, made my boss look fantastic and over-delivered on every task. I was committed and driven and had a good attitude to boot.  I decided to leave and thought “how will they get on without me?”  Very well as it happened.

They employed someone in my place who worked at half the rate I did and was less than helpful.  Was I missed?  You bet – for 5 minutes.  Then everyone adjusted and I was forgotten.

Someone once told me that when you leave a company it’s like taking your hand out of water.  And so it is.

Do your best but don’t ever bet on your being indispensable.  No-one is, and nor should they be.


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