Wanted to share a story of how being better than requested can harm you more than help you.
In my early 20s, I was looking for work and went to a temp service as I have done before when I needed work.
I was sent to an ice manufacturer and asked if I could do some painting. The employer said he expected the painting to take about 2 weeks to complete. It was simple painting, we had to paint some doorways and some handrails. That was it. Easy stuff.
One other guy and I arrive on a Monday morning and are shown the areas the employer wanted painting. We started painting and very quickly realized that the employer/manager was poor with time management. We ended up finishing the painting in 2 days.
This should have been it. The manager was allotted funds and time for a project to take 2 weeks which was completed in 2 days. He could of taken the remaining 8 days he had planned for us and thanked us for our hard work and for exceeding his and his bosses' expectations, then told us to stay home for those 8 days and he would sign off that we worked.
Nope.
We were asked to return the next day.
When we arrive he takes us to this small valley behind the plant that has been overgrown with brier bush. This stuff was thick and the vines had about 1-inch-long thorns. He then hands us these 2 weed eaters that had plastic blades and oversized engines to use to clear out the vines in the valley. He told us this should take us the rest of the 2 weeks to complete this task.
We finished in 1 and a half days.
Again he could.of told us to stay home and he would pay us. I mean hell the money was already budgeted and the time allocated.
Nope.
He thanked us and sent us home. Was told that we did not need to return that Friday nor next week as we completed the job that was asked of us.
At the end of everything the company got 2 task done in 4 days that they thought would cost them much much more than it did. What me and the other guy got was 4 days of pay for doing a month's worth of work in 4 days.
Had me and the other guy just played grab ass for those 2 weeks we would of gotten more out of the project.
This is not the 1st time nor has it been the last time which it has been more beneficial to dick around at work than it is to actually work at exceeding expectations.
Just to add, last year I had a project which I was asked to hire temp labor for one week to complete. I set up the contract and the Monday when our guy showed up I told him 1st thing what I needed done, how long he had to do it, and if he got done with it early I would send him home and pay him for rest of the week to spend his time however he wanted.