When a plumber was asked why he didn’t move the rock, he reply: “That was not my job, they pay me to build pipes, not to move rocks, I did my job!”.

When you hear someone say this you might have a few common reactions. So, you might assume the the person is not committed to the job, that they are lazy, or is not a “team player”. But this doesn’t come out of nowhere. There is usually a good reason for this phrase appearing. You just need to find out what it is.

The workplace can be chaotic and busy. Many are working in situations where there is to much to do, with not enough resources.

As a result, flexibility is key. With a happy, motivated team, you’ll often see team members pitching in to help others when it’s needed.

When we see the “it’s not my job” mentality come out, this can be a sign that all is not well in the team. Instead of pitching in, people are refusing to help.

When your team has a degree of flexibility, greater resilience exists. If workloads increase, people spend additional effort to pick up the slack. This additional flexibility also helps with emergencies, where unexpected events occur that need to be taken care of.

Sure, we can blame the team member for saying it, but instead of this, let’s look at some of the potential causes:

If they don’t feel like they are being appropriately recognised or appreciated for their efforts, they may be thinking “Why would I bother?”

Often when a team member believes they are doing more work than other colleagues, or shouldering more responsibility, for little reward, they feel treated unfairly. People who believe they are unappreciated or underpaid are unlikely to spend extra effort to help others.

We’ve all heard many stories of burnout, stress and fatigue. A fairly recent phenomenon resulting from this is the rise of “quiet quitting”. This is essentially people putting in just enough effort to do their job, but holding back from going over and above.

If someone is struggling to do a task, it could be down to a lack of confidence. Instead of admitting they don’t know, some team members may feel ashamed that they can’t perform the work you need them to. Hiding the problem is regarded as better than admitting fault in their eyes.

So, reflect upon these possible causes and work on addressing them accordingly. The first step in solving any problem is recognizing there is one.