'View the job as a chance to give, not to earn': Out-of-touch executive tells struggling workers to do the job for the love, not the money

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Brad Dickson • Managing Editor
Dec 31, 2023 7:00 AM EST

Sometimes, you really can't help but wonder if people even listen to the words coming out of their own mouths or if they're so out of touch that they hear and even believe the wildly out-of-touch things that they are saying.

The reality is that whether we love, are passionate about, and believe in what we do—or not—is really a moot point. We work for money to provide for ourselves, to put a roof over our families' heads, and to put food on our table. The service, skills, and time that we provide are provided in exchange for compensation at the market rate—in its simplest form, that's pretty much how this whole thing works… whether we like it or not.

So, to turn around and tell your employees that they should be making the company more money "for the love of it"—out of the kindness of their heart without compensation… Yeah, that's not going to go over very well and is going to show just how out of touch you are.

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  • 01
    Posted by u/dirthurts 22 hours ago Our rich CIO told us to "do the job the love, not the money" when we told him we didn't make enough to live So the title says it all really. We had a very rare sit down and speak with what appeared to be a caring, wholesome, understanding leader in our group. He asked about what we needed and our concerns, so we of course brought up the fact that people who work there with even multiple degrees couldn't buy homes or save money. At best most
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  • 02
    were living check to check. He suggested that we should view the job as a chance to give, not to earn. He said no one works for the passion anymore. That they're cutting cost to the customer and they simply cannot afford it (while raising prices and making record profits of course). Apparently completely obvious to his monumental amount of privilege he was bathing in while telling us all about how hard he's had it. He continued to go on about how he's not here for the money. He's
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  • 03
    here to change things. To make lives better. Like he was Jesus himself, job hopping between corporate gigs with golden parachutes, buying houses and cars, not for the money but to in fact do it's all a favor. He's here for us. Not money favor mind you. The favor was clearly his presence. His lying grin and broken promises. His dense, clueless countenance as he spewed an overwhelming deluge of fetid heroism into our faces. A room full of us, a room full of him and he pulled this. I think the man
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    typhoidtimmy 20 hr. ago "Yea, let me know when you can pay a mortgage in 'love', ya J idiot. 245 Reply Share
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    Technical_Airline205 - 22 hr. ago This whole paragraph could have comfortably fit into a Kurt Vonnegut novel, his worst case scenario has become our demented reality. 113 Reply Share Krynn71 4 hr. ago Was thinking the same. Reminded me of Tim Minchin' beat poem Mitsubishi Colt. His poem is even about the same issue lol. He pauses for a beat Long enough for me to retreat to a seat And sit, elbow on bar And contemplate this guru With his white teeth and big car And ponder silently my belief that g
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    LVCSSlacker 20 hr. ago "It's a lot easier to be passionate about the job when I'm not terrified for my life about missing a paycheck." 126 Reply Share
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    BikeCookie 21 hr. ago Sounds like everyone needs to show up to work with sacked out cars and take turns breaking down behind him in the parking lot 42 Reply Share
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    Aredditdorkly. 17 hr. ago "The job I'd love would be capable of paying my bills and then some. Your move." 39 Reply Share
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    OneOnOne6211 15 hr. ago If he's not here for the money, then the solution here is very simple. He starts taking minimum wage and gives everything else (including stock options or whatever he has) to you guys. Then he can work for the passion like he wants, and you can get the money. Then everyone should be happy, right? Unless, of course, he's completely full of . In which case he would never give up his huge chest of gold. Reply Share 40
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    Vdaniels1 19 hr. ago Passion doesn't make a paycheck, ask the starving artist. No boss should ever expect their employees to work for the love of the job. Do shareholders buy stock in companies not expecting to get paid back....I doubt it. 35 Reply Share
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    SuperSassyPantz · 15 hr. ago well in that case, how bout we bring your salary down to our level since we're all in the spirit of working for the passion and not the paycheck? Reply Share 11
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    E AWholeNewFattitude 14 hr. ago That means you leave. 9 Reply Share dirthurts OP 13 hr. ago Most of the team already has. 11 Reply Share AWholeNewFattitude 13 hr. ago Then its their turn to complain that nobody wants to work anymore 4.4 Reply Share
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