Namaste, wonderful souls! It’s Ritu Singal, your life coach, here to talk about something that touches many of us: salary, recognition, and feeling valued at work. Have you ever felt overlooked, underpaid, or like your hard work isn’t getting the acknowledgment it deserves? Perhaps you’ve watched a colleague, with similar experience and qualifications, soar ahead with promotions, hefty raises, and even company perks, while you’re left wondering, “What am I doing wrong?”
If this resonates with you, trust me, you’re not alone. I hear stories like this often, and it brings to mind a powerful parable about a king and two employees, a story that holds the key to unlocking your true worth at work.
The King’s Insight: A Tale of Two Employees
Imagine a man, eager for work, who approaches a king and is hired at a fixed salary of 5,000 dinars. He starts his new role, full of anticipation, only to discover another employee, doing what appears to be the exact same job, earning a staggering 20,000 dinars! Naturally, he feels a surge of injustice. “Your Majesty,” he protests, “this is completely unfair! We do the same work, yet he earns so much more. Why?” The wise king, with a knowing smile, simply says, “Let’s wait and see.”
A few days later, a commotion erupts in the kingdom. The king calls the first man, “Go check where this noise is coming from.” The man returns, “Your Majesty, some people have gathered, and that’s why there’s all this noise.” The king presses further, “But who are these people? Where did they come from?” The man goes again, returns, and reports, “Your Majesty, some people have come from another state, wearing saffron clothes.” “What do they do?” the king asks.
He goes, inquires, and comes back, “They sing and play music.” “How much do they charge?” the king inquires. Yet again, the man sets off, returns, and states, “They charge 10,000 dinars.” Finally, the king instructs, “Ask them how much they would charge if I hire them.” The man goes one last time and returns with the answer: “They want 6,000 dinars.”
At this point, the king calls the second man. “There’s some noise,” he says, “go check what’s going on.” This man leaves, and in mere minutes, he returns with a comprehensive report: “Maharaj, some people have come from Rajasthan. They’re wearing traditional clothes, singing and playing music, and they charge 10,000 dinars.
They asked for 6,000 dinars, but I negotiated it down to 4,000 dinars.”The first man, who had been listening intently, suddenly understood everything. “Maharaj,” he exclaimed, “now I get why my salary is low and theirs is high.”
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This story, my friends, holds a profound lesson for all of us yearning for a raise or promotion. It’s not always about asking for more money; it’s about demonstrating your indispensable value. The difference between the two employees was not their initial qualifications or even their perceived “job description.” It was their approach to problem-solving, their initiative, and their commitment to seeing tasks through to completion.
The first man was a reporter of information. He answered questions, but each answer required a separate trip, a separate query. He was reactive, not proactive. He provided data, but not solutions.
The second man, however, was a solution-provider. He didn’t just report the noise; he identified the source, the origin, the purpose, the cost, and even negotiated a better deal for the king. He anticipated the king’s next questions and provided all the relevant information without being asked. He took ownership and delivered a complete, actionable outcome.
Your Salary Reflects Your Value to Management
Here’s the harsh but liberating truth: If you don’t give management a comfortable level of confidence in your ability to handle things independently and effectively, it’s not management’s problem – it’s yours.
Think about it:
- Do you fully understand your work, not just the tasks, but their impact on the company?
- Do you put your heart and soul into every aspect, big or small?
- Do you see initiatives through to the very end, anticipating challenges and finding solutions before they become management’s burden?
- Are you focused on contributing to the company’s growth, or are you primarily concerned about what others are earning?
- Do you get caught up in office gossip and distractions, or are you laser-focused on your objectives?
If your answers lean towards the latter, it’s time for a crucial self-evaluation. Being a manager, whether in title or in action, means managing things properly and taking them all the way to the finish line. It means taking initiative, foreseeing problems, and presenting solutions, not just problems.
Why Your Colleague Got the Car and the Promotion
You mentioned your colleague, with the same MBA and experience, got a car, a promotion to manager, and a significantly higher salary and incentives. While it feels unfair on the surface, the king’s story illuminates the potential reason.
It’s highly probable that your colleague, like the second man in our story, has demonstrated a higher level of:
- Proactive Problem-Solving: They don’t just identify issues; they present solutions.
- Initiative & Ownership: They take charge and see tasks through to completion, often exceeding expectations.
- Strategic Thinking: They understand the broader implications of their work and contribute to the company’s strategic goals.
- Reliability & Trustworthiness: Management trusts them to deliver without constant oversight.
- Value Creation: They consistently find ways to add significant value to the company, whether through cost savings, increased revenue, improved processes, or enhanced client relationships.
The MBA and experience are foundational, but it’s the application of that knowledge with a proactive, solution-oriented mindset that truly sets individuals apart and makes them indispensable.
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How to Become Indispensable and Command a Higher Salary (Without Asking)
So, how do you shift from being the first employee to the second? How do you become so valuable that the company naturally wants to reward you with a better salary, promotions, and perhaps even that coveted car?
Here are the key steps, rooted in the wisdom of our story:
- Evaluate Your Work with Radical Honesty:
- Assess Your Output, Not Just Your Effort: Are you just completing tasks, or are you delivering exceptional results? Are you consistently exceeding expectations?
- Identify Gaps in Your Proactiveness: Where could you take more initiative? Where could you anticipate problems and offer solutions before being asked?
- Measure Your Impact: Quantify your contributions. How have you saved the company money, increased efficiency, or contributed to revenue? Numbers speak louder than words.
- Become a Master Problem-Solver, Not Just a Problem-Identifier:
- When you encounter an issue, don’t just report it. Think about potential solutions.
- If you bring a problem to your manager, always bring at least one or two potential solutions along with it. This demonstrates critical thinking and initiative.
- Think like an owner: If this was your business, how would you resolve this?
- Take Extreme Ownership:
- See projects through from conception to completion. Don’t drop the ball once your part is done.
- Anticipate the next steps, potential roadblocks, and what information your manager or other stakeholders might need. Provide it proactively.
- Be the person who consistently delivers on commitments, no excuses.
- Understand the “Why” Behind Your Work:
- Don’t just do tasks; understand how your work contributes to the larger goals of your department and the company.
- This understanding will allow you to make more informed decisions, prioritize effectively, and identify opportunities for greater impact.
- Focus on Value Creation (and Make it Visible):
- Constantly look for ways to add more value. Can you streamline a process? Improve customer satisfaction? Identify new opportunities?
- Crucially, make your contributions visible. This doesn’t mean boasting, but rather effectively communicating your achievements and impact in regular updates, performance reviews, or informal conversations. Highlight the results of your work, not just the activities.
- Shift Your Mindset from “What I’m Owed” to “What I Can Offer”:
- Your salary isn’t just about your qualifications; it’s a reflection of the value you bring to the organization.
- When you focus on maximizing your value, the compensation naturally follows. Become indispensable, and the company will recognize your worth. They won’t want to lose you.
- Minimize Distractions and Maximize Focus:
- Are you wasting precious time on office gossip, social media, or unproductive activities?
- Re-direct that energy into deepening your skills, learning new aspects of the business, or focusing intensely on your core responsibilities.
The Power of Perspective: Change Your Inner World, Change Your Outer Reality
The final wisdom from the story rings true: “Change your mindset, and the stars will change. Change your perspective, and the whole view will change. You don’t need to change the boats, just change the direction, and the shores will change.”
This isn’t about blaming you for your current situation; it’s about empowering you to take control. Your external reality – your salary, your title, your incentives – is often a direct reflection of your internal approach and perceived value.
When you genuinely put your heart and soul into your work, when you become a solution-driven, proactive, and indispensable asset, you become invaluable. Companies cherish such individuals. They will naturally reward you with a good salary, promote you, and yes, perhaps even give you a car, because they understand that investing in you is investing in their own success.
So, my dear friends, which category do you fall into? The first or the second? It’s time to evaluate your own work, see how much passion you truly put into working for management and the company’s growth. Are you focused on your work, or are you consumed by comparing yourself to someone else’s salary?
Your power lies not in asking, but in becoming. Become the kind of employee no company can afford to lose, and watch as your career, and your income, transform.
