Workplace self-help: Can knowing your colleagues’ job can make you better at your own?

I recently attended a family wedding in Raniganj, a town in West Bengal as stereotypically “small-town India” as is possible. I discovered two things that small-town folk love to flaunt and flex about.

First, their encyclopaedic knowledge of religious dates – when Ekadashi falls, what astrological shenanigans are tied to Mahashivratri this year and so on. Second, an uncanny knack for unearthing obscure food joints famed for their hyper-specific delicacies.

One evening, we cousins were lounging about, doing what cousins do best – absolutely nothing – when a craving for samosas swept through the room like a sudden summer storm. The collective gaze turned toward my cousin Bhola, a bona fide Raniganj local and, by virtue of geography, the logical choice for samosa procurer-in-chief. But Bhola, as I observed with slight amusement, looked like a man who’d been unjustly sentenced to hard labour.

When the pressure started to build on Bhola, his discomfort grew palpable. He fidgeted, cleared his throat and cast mournful glances at the door, as if it led to a Rohit Shetty film instead of the market. Just when it seemed his surrender was inevitable, inspiration struck him like a lightning bolt. His eyes lit up, his posture straightened and he leaned forward with the air of a man about to deliver profound wisdom.

“You know,” he began, his tone rich with authority, “there’s a place on the other side of town that makes chana samosas. Special item, very famous.”

The room buzzed with excitement. “Chana in a samosa!” someone gasped. I could hear sounds of mild slurping. Could even have been my own. Encouraged by the rising tide of approval, Bhola pressed on. “And isn’t phuphaji coming from that side of town? Why don’t we just ask him to bring some?”

It was a masterstroke. Bhola had deftly redirected the responsibility while simultaneously elevating himself to the status of a local connoisseur. I knew immediately that if, one day, I formed a secret society of Zen Hustlers – like a new-age Freemasons – Bhola would be one of the first to be inducted.

In Bhola’s smart deflection, we can find one of the most important codes of Zen Hustling.

When you’re working in a company, understanding the lay of the land is crucial. Who does what? Where does the buck stop for various tasks? Which departments and individuals handle different aspects of the business? Think of it as having a mental map of the company. With this map, you’ll never feel lost – and you’ll always know the shortest route to getting things done.

A few IPL seasons ago, Ravichandran Ashwin found himself batting deep into the eighteenth over. Now, Ashwin is no slouch with the bat in Test cricket – five centuries don’t happen by accident. But T20? That’s not his playground. He’s neither the boundary-clearing bruiser nor the sprinter between wickets. On this particular day, his lofted shots seemed to have a mind of their own – neither reaching the boundary ropes nor obligingly landing in a fielder’s hands.

The bowling side didn’t seem to mind this too much. They would rather see Ashwin hoicking the ball to mid-off than watch Riyan Parag, his batting partner, send it to the stands. Not to mention, Ashwin was ticking off deliveries faster than F1 lap times. His Twitter mentions were spiking to newer heights with each passing ball.

Smart man that he is, Ashwin played a checkmate move and retired himself out. Quietly heading back to the dugout, he metaphorically handed over the baton. ‘Go on, lads, this one’s yours now,’ he might as well have said as he peeled off his pads.

That day, Ashwin showed that there’s a Zen Hustler in him.

Until you understand who does what, your execution will always feel like running with weights strapped to your ankles. You’ll hit unexpected roadblocks, face unnecessary delays and your efficiency will take a nosedive. But once you grasp the structure of your company, those obstacles start to vanish. You’ll move faster, and your projects will have a smoother runway.

There’s another significant perk of knowing who does what: avoiding unnecessary work. You cannot be a Zen Hustler unless you give yourself the gift of time. Time to focus on what truly matters—the tasks central to your Key Result Areas (KRAs), the ones that will define your evaluations and, ultimately, your promotions. In short, it helps you sidestep the trap of taking on unnecessary work that doesn’t move the needle on your career.

When you know whose job it is to handle a particular task, you can deflect unwanted work with finesse. Instead of saying, “That’s not my job” (which, let’s face it, can make you sound like a jerk), you can say, “This is better suited for so-and-so”. It’s a win-win situation. The work gets done, the company benefits, and you … Well, you stay in your lane while earning points for being helpful and resourceful.

Take my agency, for instance. My team was often seen as the go-to group for number crunching. Need data? Come to us. But here’s the kicker: We had a separate analytics team that was far better equipped for certain tasks. So, I started redirecting some of those requests to the analytics team instead. They were thrilled to finally be acknowledged. In fact, I may have even helped solidify their value in the company. Who knows, I might’ve saved their jobs. The point is, by knowing others’ job scopes, I not only lightened my team’s load but also ensured the work was handled by the best-suited experts.

This approach isn’t just about dodging work. It’s about ensuring the company’s resources are utilised efficiently. When you start doing tasks outside your job scope, you’re not just overextending yourself – you’re potentially robbing the company of optimal outcomes. You’ve been hired to do your job, and to do it well. When you dilute your focus by taking on others’ responsibilities, your own work suffers. And that doesn’t serve anyone – not you, not your team, and certainly not the company.

That’s not to say you should never step up. Going beyond your scope makes sense when no one else in the company can do the job. That’s when your extra effort truly adds value and gets recognised. But if someone else is already designated to do that task, and you take it on anyway? You’re doing nobody any favours – least of all, yourself.

Let’s talk about boundaries. Sticking to your role’s boundaries isn’t laziness; it’s a smart strategy. Offering unsolicited help might make you feel like a hero, but, in reality, it’s more likely to make you the office busybody – or worse, the fall guy when things go wrong. Leave the “I’ll do it all” attitude to the overly enthusiastic building uncle who’s always meddling in everyone’s business. As a Zen Hustler, your goal is to be the best at what you do. That’s all you should be focused on.

Executing this strategy requires one essential trait: Curiosity. You need to be naturally curious about the organisation. Who are the key players? What do they do? How does responsibility flow? How is accountability distributed? You won’t uncover this information by sitting in your cubicle with your head down. Get out there, ask questions and observe. This curiosity will pay off in spades as you build a clearer picture of the company’s ecosystem.

Now, let’s address a common misconception. Knowing others’ job scopes isn’t about shirking responsibility. It’s about showing people the right way to get things done. When you direct someone to the best-suited person for a task, you’re not just deflecting work – you’re adding value. The person seeking help gets their task completed more effectively, and they’ll often circle back to update you on the outcome. This feedback loop enriches your knowledge base, making you an even better navigator of the corporate maze.

When faced with work outside your scope, ask yourself: “Who is our best person for this job?” Think of it like assembling a winning football team. If you’ve got an Erling Haaland on your squad, why would you put a midfielder in his position? The better you understand your company’s roster, the better you can deploy its resources.

There’s another perk to this approach: Respect. If you respond to a request with, “I don’t know who handles this”, you risk appearing clueless. And if you look clueless about this, people might assume you’re clueless about other things as well. On the other hand, being the person who knows the “go-to” folks for any task earns you credibility and respect.

Of course, in some worst-case scenarios, you might still end up doing work outside your scope. When that happens, knowing who was originally responsible can be a powerful tool in future negotiations. As long as you’re aware that the task wasn’t yours to begin with, you can leverage this knowledge to ensure fair recognition or avoid similar situations in the future.

Excerpted with permission from The Zen Hustle Code: Life-Changing Strategies for Unstoppable Career Growth, Anupam Mukerji and Bhasker Jaiswal, HarperCollins India.