FinTech Chief of Staff: Week 8 — Becoming Indispensable
One of my favorite books is “48 Laws of Power” by Robert Greene. In this book, Greene uses historical narratives as a basis for developing rules on how to obtain and maintain ‘power’. One law that stands out to me as I finish up my second month as CoS is “Law 11: Become Indispensible”.
Readers think this rule is clouded in cynicism. I don’t agree. I think you can adhere to this rule without sacrificing positive relationships or developing bad intentions. If anything, the motivation behind the philosophy is beneficial for all parties involved.
“To maintain your independence you must always be needed and wanted. The more you are relied upon, the more freedom you have”.
Freedom takes shape in a variety of ways. Let’s say a company has a in-person work policy. If a employee is indispensable, he or she can bypass that policy and work remote without fear of repercussion. Having knowledge and skills that your peers don’t have gives you leeway as it would be too painful to do without you.
