Are You Indispensable?

According to dictionary.com, the definition of indispensable is:

1. Adjective
   1. Absolutely necessary, essential, or requisite
   1. Incapable of being disregarded or neglected
2. Noun
   1. A person or thing that is indispensable.

I have heard it said that the secret to success is to make yourself indispensable at your job, career, or vocation.  As a teenager, I accepted that.  In my first full-time job, I got some sage advice from my first boss.  He told me his “Five-Gallon Bucket Rule.”  He said that if you ever think you are indispensable at work, fill a five-gallon bucket with water.  Look at the water in the bucket, then stick your hand in the water, and notice the difference when you pull your hand out.  You might leave a ripple or two, but the water will return later.  His key takeaway is that we are all replaceable.

I referred to that rule many times in my 40+ years of full-time employment.  As it relates to leadership, should the leader think of themself as indispensable?  No, the same rule applies.  I believe (using The Five-Gallon Bucket Rule) that the legacy the leader brings to the organization can be viewed as the ripples left in the bucket.  The stronger the legacy, the stronger the ripples.  But eventually, the water settles down and the calm in the bucket returns.

I guess the narcissistic leader would want the organization to fall apart after he/she leaves.  That’s not the style of leadership I espouse.  I’m comfortable in the legacy I left at Chevron.  Could I have done more or better?  Of course.  Did the organization return to stability after I left?  Of course.  I’m absolutely certain that happened right after I walked out of the office the last time.  The question I ask of myself, and I encourage you to ask of your leadership, is “Did I have a positive impact on others?”

In the last year after my retirement, a number of former colleagues have reached out to me for advice.  I am truly humbled and honored by that.  That tells me that my impact on them was positive.  Are they dependent on me?  Absolutely not.  I don’t want them to be.  My desire is to build leaders who would achieve much more than I did.

How about you?  Are you trying to be indispensable in your current leadership role?  If so, I challenge you to find and develop your replacement.  Also, ask yourself continuously how you could eliminate your job.  Instead of becoming indispensable, work yourself out of a job.  I was successful in my own job four different times at Chevron.  Leave on your own terms, and leave a positive legacy in doing so.

I’d love to know what you think of this.  Have you known people who strive to make themselves indispensable?  If so, how did that work out for them?  Have you known leaders who were content to develop their replacement?  How did that work?