To be irreplaceable at the workplace – yes or no?
The sooner a person accepts in life that “no one is irreplaceable in work” and that the work will not stop if you are not there or you resign, it will be easier for you to face things and situations that happen every day. You will be able to look at the business segment of your life more realistically and objectively.
Is any worker replaceable?
Of course, it is, both the good worker and the best worker. All are replaceable, but without someone it’s a little bit harder. Some can be replaced by one worker, some by two, and some by ten new workers, but again, the job will work somehow. In contrast to business life, in other segments of life, the issue of irreplaceability should be considered in a different way.
Why do you want to be irreplaceable at the workplace?
That’s a pretty good question.
If you want to do it for your own reasons , to make yourself progress, to increase your knowledge or to achieve your pre-set goals, that is quite acceptable.
However, if you want to be irreplaceable in order to rise on the hierarchical ladder in the company, to prove to someone that you are excellent in your work, to be the one who is asked about everything, etc … then that is a completely wrong path.
Two possible outcomes of irreplaceability:
1. Irreplaceability is not a safe, guaranteed, and lifelong position
No one can guarantee that you will remain in an “irreplaceable” position. You can be replaced by another “irreplaceable” colleague at any time. At that moment, when other people take your place, your life for you will no longer have the meaning and you will find yourself in a trap that you have prepared yourself. The irony of the whole story is that before that point, you will probably be forced to educate that person and thus help him/her to be your boss in the end.
Simply, we live in such a system where irreplaceability should no longer be the goal you are striving for. Therefore, reconsider your decision, define your wishes and the path you should take.
2. Guaranteed position of irreplaceability
Even if you become completely irreplaceable in the company you work for, are you sure that you would be happy in the long run?
Once you achieve the goal that no one can replace you, and that you know everything, that all collegues ask you about certain things because only you have the right answer… For sure, there will come a time when you will get tired of everyone and everything, esspecialy on the vacations, family gatherings and your free times… There would be a lot of reasonable questions, and those not so smart and urgent.
Would you be paid for it? Does free time have a price, or you just don’t want it?
Or worse, there is the possibility of being caught by your own irreplaceability and finally open the door to a period of stagnation.
While your tasks will be just a routine for you, your salary will not grow since the speed of work will give the impression that your job is easy and that you have too much free time during working hours. And while you enjoy your irreplaceability, someone else will prosper.
Do you really want to be irreplaceable at the workplace?
While you are engaged in proving to someone that you are irreplaceable, surrounded by important but generally irrelevant thoughts, life passes by you. On the other hand, someone you prove yourself to is here today, and maybe not tomorrow.
It is important that you have your own attitude to know which way to go.
You need to have the confidence to reach the goals you have set.
Review your decision.
Because you strive to keep your business life high on the priority ladder, other segments of life can feel the consequences. On the priority ladder, compare the positions of your family and private life and do not allow your private life to suffer. If all segments of life are not at the same level, it has been scientifically proven that you cannot be happy in the long run.
Stop and think!