why is taking initiative a double edged sword?

Just to start off, I think this blog should turn into a article in a newspaper or a job website or something.

OK so here we go...
As an employer you would like your staff to take initiative at work to make things go better and such. But what do you do when your employee(s) take the initiviative but its not what you want, however it does make sense what they did! So I think there should be a compramise at work. I think employers have to realize, when you expect your staff to take initiative you ahve to realize that it wont always be what you wanted, even if they did a good job, but would you rather tehm come to you everytime before they did something, doesnt that curb productivity? If the product isnt ruined just doen differently why get upset? And for the employee, how can you take initiative and be guarenteed to be always taking the positive initiatives?

(any replies on the above paragraph are very welcome, so email or post a reply please.)


Heres my take, and the example. Last night I went downstairs to clean the walk in fridge, seeing that one of the shelves were almost entirely empty, I took the initiative to load it back up with the new product that was sitting in a box on the floor and rotate everything so the old was in front of the new. To me if a employee did that I would happy for them taking the initiative, hwoever I got screamed at..reasoning being? The chef wanted to do it on tuesday night and I did it two nights earlier. The product didnt get ruined, if anything the fridge looks cleaner, there is more room to walk around and retrieve things especially if you go down in middle of a busy service to get somethign you dont have to run around looking for stuff.

example two. I went home for break leaving all the prep for a certain dish that has to get portioned and vacuum packed, all ready to go. Thinkign it woudl get done, between services by the chef, who is supposed to work all day from open to close, it didnt get done. SO while waitign for dinner to get cooked for the staff, I started portioning soem of it into single portions. Well appearently takign the initiative and not asking was wrogn again. because he wanted it packaged differently.

In the end there wasa waste of the vacuum bags (about 10 cents each minimum), waste of time, as well is frustration. If I ask before I do everythign then I dont have a mind of my own, and I cant take initiative. If I take initiative and I am nto doing anythign wrong, because the product is still the same, why not just let it go?

again comments are very welcome on this topic. There has to be a way to be able to take initiative without getting it wrong, even if you know you are doing the right thing.



Ok next thing. I will be finished work on the 12th of June, although I might work an extra half day since sunday lunches are usually busy, and maybe Ill help them out, not sure yet, right now leaning against it because of the way I am being treated.

So here is the plan so far, I am goign to leave strasbourg on the 14th for paris where I will drop off my suitcase and box at a friend of my brothers house, then fly to manchester england to see my younger brother for a few days. I will be back in france on the 116th at night and probably stay over night there, and then catch a early train to normandy where I will start an intense two weeks of food and wine travelling normandy (cheese, juno beach), brittany(fish), loire valley (cheese and my favourite bubbly wine), and the dordogne (foie Gras) then head to madrid.

WELCOME BACK GARY AND PAULA