Sachin H. Jain: Being present and showing up for the team counts more than you’ll ever know

Sachin H. Jain shared a post on LinkedIn:

“Early in my career, I used to routinely skip big required company meetings because I was “busy getting work done”—focusing on the burning fire or emergency of the day.

I would convince myself I was being more productive in the short term by being so goal-oriented.

I took pride in it.

Then something funny happened.

I realized that I didn’t really feel like I was part of the company.

I “missed memos” on important topics.

I felt less and less like I knew what was going on because—I was so busy dealing with the latest fire that I didn’t really take the time to be a part of the group.

Larger company meetings where were new initiatives were discussed and companies disseminated information.

And then it occured to me that everyone else found time to attend.

Lots of work went into creating these meetings

What made me feel different or special that I couldn’t carve out the time to be present?

To feel part of the team.

I realized:

Being part of a company didn’t just mean that I was doing work in the traditional sense.

It meant I was present.

That I was absorbing and contributing to the cultural milieu.

In fact, I came to realize that “just” showing up is work too—in a different form.

So next time you think of skipping that meeting to “do work”—think about how you might be missing an important mark and inadvertently isolating yourself.

In reality, being present and showing up for the team counts more than you’ll ever know.”

Source: Sachin H. Jain/LinkedIn

Sachin H. Jain is the President and CEO of SCAN Group and Health Plan and an Adjunct Professor of Medicine at Stanford University School of Medicine. He also serves as a Board Member at The Paul & Daisy Soros Fellowships for New Americans, an Academic Hospitalist (WOC) at the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, and a Board Member at America’s Health Insurance Plans (AHIP). He is also a board member of Omada Health.