I would change the title from “Do you work harder than your boss” to “Are you more productive than your boss”. Could be just me, but I think different people have different perceptions of working hard. And just because your working hard does not mean you’re working productively. I have friends that look like the laziest students, yet they ace their exams, create valuable work, and bring interesting discussion to lectures.

Also, not all employees are cutout to be a CEO. Or a leader. Most employees probably couldnt handle making tough decisions CEOs must make, leading people toward a collective purpose, etc. There is simply a different skill set that a CEO position demands from a an employee postion.

However, I do agree with your thoughts on leading by example, asking your employees to think outside the box, etc. Especially with my generation, whatever you want to call it (Gen-y, millenials) collaboration between employee and leaders will be crucial. May not be as effective with older generations, but will be with the generation coming in.
.-= Ronnie´s last blog ..Optimize Your Growth as an Individual =-.

There are definitely mom and pop shops though where the CEOs do a LITTLE work, hire their offspring at $80K so they can yell at the plebeians, and don’t care about profitability as long as they can pay themselves, write a bunch of stuff off, and get their name in the paper/do a few interviews.

It’s easy to sit in the trenches and see how your manager knows nothing and does nothing, and I’m sure it’s true for many of us. But the chart above seems grossly mis-stated to me.
.-= Monica O’Brien´s last blog ..Integrating email marketing with social media =-.

I think my sympathies lie with the employees who feel trapped and that they can’t leave because of the economy. The manager’s will get what’s coming to them I suspect. Though, let’s be honest, this world isn’t always fair, in fact it rarely is.

I think this is a great perspective. One could argue that there are a handful of bosses that ‘just got lucky,’ and this is certainly true, but they’re likely the minority. At least I hope so.

BUT the question remains, what can they do to communicate to their subordinates that they’re working hard, or at least have a good handle on what’s going on to ensure they get the most productivity and effort out of them?

He hasn’t given me any raise in several years and even took away my sick days this year, citing “the economy”. Perhaps if he spent more time working, the business would be making more money. I’m not the sales department, he is. I resent the disrespect and lack of effort on his part. I have been actively looking for a new position, and when I find one I’ll leave with no regrets…knowing that he let me down. I’ve been there for eleven years, and his behavior is showing me the door.

Just sayin’
.-= Stuart Foster´s last blog ..Rotnem Philosophy =-.

To an entry level worker though they could perceive themselves to be doing 35 hours of work, and a senior leader doing 16 hours of work because they don’t always see decision making processes, etc. What’s TANGIBLE can sometimes be important I suspect, OR at least the way upper management communicates the value of what they do to their subordinates.