How to Handle an Employee Whose Hearts Not in It

Several jobs ago, Erik was the manager of a group of software developers and there was one girl in particular there that everybody liked and was very good at her job. Erik could tell, however, that her heart wasn’t in it, she wanted something else out of her career and her life. Erik wanted to figure out what that thing was so he asked her to go with him for a walk because this isn’t the type of thing you ask in front of everyone. They sat on the picnic table and he asked her if her heart was no longer in the job and she said that wasn’t the case, she was just in a funk. So, they went back inside and everything was fine. About a week later, she approached Erik at his desk and asked if they could take a walk and said that since thinking through it, she was no longer into it. They talked through it, there were no issues but she did end up quitting that job and going off on her own. It was an interesting situation for Erik because it had happened a few times before in his career of managing people but he’d never said anything, he just let it slide. From there, it almost always turned into a bad situation. This time it was different. He approached the subject, she was able to admit it without feeling bad, and her employment ended on amicable terms.  — Erik J. Olson is an award-winning digital marketer & entrepreneur. The Founder & CEO of Array Digital, he is also the host of the Journey to $100 Million Flash Briefing and daily podcast, and the organizer of the Marketers Anonymous monthly meetups. — Kevin Daisey is an award-winning digital marketer & entrepreneur. He started his first company when he was just 23, and is the Founder & CMO of Array Digital. Kevin is also the co-host of the Journey to $100 Million Flash Briefing and daily podcast, and the co-organizer of the Marketers Anonymous monthly meetups. — For more information on the show, and to check out past episodes, go to journeyto100million.com!