TEN Questions for Every Employee

1. Is it important to have a plan for a job before you get employed? Explain your answer

Planning to benefit from a job or work assignment ensures that a person is not just motivated by the offer of a job and anticipated income, but that they stay motivated to pursue higher goals and implement fulfilling growth plans in their own circumstances in life.

2. Why do people lose work focus and become demotivated after earning a salary for a few months?

People can become demotivated after their basic needs are (briefly) satisfied such as is facilitated by a consistent salary. Or, become complacent once they have mastered the job, but make no effort to perfect or excel in their work. This makes employees miss out on opportunities for their own personal development that employees may offer. 

3. How long should you take on a job before you look for “greener pastures”?

People looking for greener pastures they are often looking for more money and less work. But advancement is not always about a simple promotion. It could mean an opportunity to complete a personal project by virtue of the location of your current job or accumulate capital to change your economic status. My advice is before you make a move to another job make sure you have planted some grass of your own.

4. Is it possible to work for 20 years without accumulating any assets? Yes or No? Explain your view?

Yes it is possible to work for many years without making any savings or accumulating wealth for yourself and family to live on after you leave the job. While having a retirement plan is important, having a wealth creation plan based on your monthly income that can sustain you should you lose your job is very wise!

5. The purpose of a job is to “earn a living” ; true or false – explain your response

False; Employment provides many more and greater benefits to employees than earning a living. The core of a job is work. If you are able to work you can live off your work. Nonetheless, formal employment provides you the privilege of at least four things financial income, experience, exposure to enterprise and the opportunity to develop yourself. There is more to work than living. In the long run it is what you are giving that is important.

6. The job belongs to the employer; true or false: explain what this mean to the employee?

True; employers create jobs for people to access employment and help them to create wealth. This means that the only stake the employee has in an enterprise is to do his assigned work and receive the agreed remuneration. If an employee wishes to remain employed he or she must do the job. Nonetheless, both parties are free to agree or disagree over terms and go their separate ways!

7. Write down three objectives for employment; How does each apply to you as an employee?

a) To create wealth for your employer, b) to learn enterprise and c) to provide you with an opportunity to develop yourself. The first thing I should do as an employee is focus on creating value for my employer to justify my employment. Then I should profit from the exposure to the process of enterprise and exercise and develop skills (capacity) to create more wealth over time.

8. “My salary is for paying my rent and meeting my expenses. When I need capital I should go to the bank”. True or false. Explain your answer?

False; there is no difference between the money the bank loans you and what you earn as a salary. The first thing the bank will ask you for is your payslip as evidence of your ability to create wealth to repay the loan. However, the bank will benefit from your work being the wealth you use to pay back the loan. Your salary is just as good money as the “capital” you get from the bank. It just depends on how you chose to use it.

9. It is not possible to create wealth with a small salary. You need to earn a lot of money in order to become rich? Discuss.

Many employees despise the power a predictable and consistent income gives them to create wealth and spend most their career trying to earn higher salaries in order to get rich. Nonetheless, those with patience and a plan end up owning more wealth than those with no patience and high incomes.

10. Does having a job make you a responsible person? Explain your answer with an example.

Having a job may make you self-reliant, but does not guarantee that you will become responsible. Responsibility is a choice of character. Carrying out the requirements of a job allows you to earn an income. You can choose to spend all your money on alcohol or feed your family.  The choice is yours.

Allan Bukusi is the author of How to Prosper in Employment: A book claims that most employees throw away a lifetime opportunity to create wealth for themselves and family because of a lack on knowledge and understanding of the purpose and power of employment to create wealth. Poverty in Africa can be revered if employees stopped making excuses for living from "hand to mouth" and started applying the simple principles of wealth creation today!