Why you need to understand what you’re actually being paid to produce changes everything you do on Monday morning
Picture three people starting new jobs.
Tomi is a graduate trainee at a logistics firm in Lagos. Her first month is a blur of reconciling spreadsheets, attending briefings and chasing signatures. James is a marketing assistant in Manchester who answers emails from 8:30 am to 6:00 pm and goes home tired. Maya is an operations analyst in Austin who builds a different report every week and isn’t sure whether anyone reads them.
All three are busy. None can say what their job is for. That gap is the subject of this article.
Activity is not output
Your job is the bundle of tasks, a title and a desk. Your work is the result the organisation needs because your role exists: the problem that stays solved, the customer who stays happy, the decision made faster.
Tomi’s job is “reconcile spreadsheets.” Her work might be “make sure the finance team can trust the shipment numbers by Friday.” Tom’s job is “answer emails.” His work might be “get qualified leads to the sales team.” Maya’s reports are her job. Her work is helping a manager decide where to spend a budget.
This matters because most of us were trained to measure effort: hours, tasks ticked off, how tired we feel. Employers pay for what the effort produces.
You are not alone in feeling unsure
Gallup, the global polling and analytics firm, has reported that only about half of employees strongly agree that they know what is expected of them at work. A later Gallup analysis found that new employees and younger employees were especially likely to report that expectations for their roles weren’t clear.
If you’re a fresh graduate and feel unsure what “good” looks like, that is common. It says more about how roles are explained than about your ability.
What the paperwork tells you, and what it doesn’t
The law in different countries gives you different starting points, and none of them hands you a clear statement of your results.
United Kingdom. Since 6 April 2020, both workers and employees are entitled to receive written particulars from day one, including a job title or a brief description of the type of work. You have a legal right to something in writing, but “brief description” is not the same as “what success looks like.” (Methodist)
Nigeria. Section 7 of the Labour Act requires that within three months of starting, the employer gives the worker a written statement that specifies, among other things, the nature of the employment. If your offer letter is vague, you can ask for the written statement, and it’s worth using the conversation to clarify expectations too. (Mondaq)
United States. There is no federal requirement for a written job description. The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) states that employers are not required to compose job descriptions. Some US employers have detailed descriptions and others have almost nothing, so the responsibility to ask is yours. (EEOC)
In all three countries, the formal document describes your duties. Only a conversation with your manager can establish your outcomes. Even a US disability-rights resource notes that a job description is most helpful when it focuses on the results or outcome of a job function, not solely on the way it is customarily performed. (Adata)
How this changes your Monday
Once you can name your work, small habits shift:
- You prioritise differently. When three tasks compete for your morning, you pick the one closest to the result you’re there to deliver.
- You can say “this isn’t the best use of my time” with evidence, instead of just feeling overloaded.
- Feedback becomes useful. “Do better” is vague. “The report needs to reach finance by Thursday so they can close the month” is something you can act on.
- Your reviews become easier to prepare. You can talk about outcomes rather than listing tasks.
I won’t promise that this guarantees a raise. Pay depends on budgets, markets and company culture. But you can’t be judged fairly, or argue for yourself, against a standard you can’t state.
Your action point: Write your Output Statement
Do this in 15 minutes this week.
Step 1. Complete this sentence:
“My role exists so that [who] can [do or get what], and I’ll know I’m doing it well when [observable result].”
For example:
- Tomi: “…so that the finance team can trust shipment figures, and I’ll know I’m doing it well when month-end reconciliation has no unexplained gaps.”
- Tom: “…so that the sales team can focus on serious buyers, and I’ll know I’m doing it well when most leads I pass over are ones they follow up.”
- Maya: “…so that managers can decide where to spend the budget, and I’ll know I’m doing it well when my reports are used in those decisions.”
Step 2. Take it to your manager as a question, not a declaration: “I want to make sure I’m focused on the right things. Is this how you see my main priorities?”
Step 3. Listen for corrections. They are the valuable part. Then revisit the statement every quarter or whenever your role changes.
If your manager is vague, ask: “What would an excellent first six months look like in this role?” Most managers can answer that, and it tells you far more than the job title does.
The takeaway
Your job title tells people where you sit. Your work is the difference you make once you’re there. Whether you’re in Lagos, Manchester or Austin, the employees who can state that difference clearly are in the best position to deliver it, and to be seen delivering it.