It seemed that by trying to make his boss look good , Syd, could never do well. Even though Syd persisted in applying the “Golden Rule” to his own workplace. Jesus said ” Do to others as you would have them do to you” ( Lk 6:31). Treating his boss as Syd himself would like to treated was all in the guise of working towards building a good and better relationship. Relationships with what psycopaths and morons . Its as if the inmates had taken over the asylum. It was all a lost cause to Syd, the worker. Smile away, pretend that he enjoyed his job, all in the guise of getting a promotion to enjoy the perks and privleges of management - do no work , tell others what to do , always blame others yet like a politician take automatic credit for any events or numbers that came in a positive way or trend. The amazing parts are that here we have Syd , a fellow with a drinking problem - driving dui to work, putting in little of any effective efforts and achieving little results, passed out most of the day from the party before, and all because he was not present meantally to cause any problems , and most importantly not challenge “Potatohead” on his lovely ideas and plans. At the most Syd might of mildy and meekly said “now that idea has merit “ or “those ideas should be further studied for implemenation as they have great merits”. In the end Syd gets promoted not because of any skills , merits , credentials or performance reviews but only because 1) he never drew attention to himself in any manner - especially negative manner 2) he had a smile on his face on his way to work every morning which his boss noticed. Rather amazing.
At the end of the road for all his troubles and efforts Syd was promoted to a position in management where his major perk was a fully stocked bar fridge.
By trying to make his boss look good you may well be applying the “golden rule” to the workplace. In traditional (normal / respectful) value systems the “Golden Rule” is held as “do not do what is hurtful to yourself to others” or “treat other people as you would like to be treated”. Another simple description in the English language is “treat others as you would like to be treated”. However with many management deviants the “Golden Rule” that they proudly exclaim and pronounce with a smirk of “power” is “The Rules are Golden and they are MY RULES” .
Here is a case in point concerning “Syd”/ Syd told me some time later about one of the little things that set his boss apart from others.
Syd’s boss - “Old Potatohead” usually arrived early for work at his office which overlooked the staff parking lot . This meant that Potatohead could see the employees as they walked from their cars into the office plant building. What Syd recalled was that the boss remarked to him , more than once , that when Syd was arriving at work in the morning that he always had a smile on his face and thus there was something more than special in the attitude of this one employee - Syd.
As they say “Monkey See, Monkey do”. Guess who got promoted to management level. Syd a poor guy with a drinking problem who would arrive to work in the morning still feeling “no pain”.
People who take long spells of sick leave at least once in three years face a higher risk of early death, according to a study that could help doctors pinpoint patients with life-threatening problems.
Researchers led by Jenny Head, an epidemiologist at University College London, obtained sickness absence records for nearly 6,500 British civil servants aged between 35 and 55, between 1985 and 1988.
They compared this data with mortality among the same group up to 2004.
The death rate was significantly higher among workers who had taken more frequent spells of sick leave.
Nearly 30 percent who had taken a medically-certified absence from work — sick leave lasting more than seven days — at least once in a three-year period had a 66-percent increased risk of premature death compared with workers with no such absence.
The death rate was especially high among employees with circulatory disease or psychiatric problems. There was no additional risk of death among those who took sick leave for back or neck problems.
The paper, published on Friday by the British Medical Journal (BMJ), suggests spells of sick leave can be a useful, fast-track indicator for general practitioners, as they could point to an urgent, underlying health problem.
The tool could also help identify employees suffering from stress and high job demands, enabling them to get treatment from occupational physicians.
• Analyze why you’re unhappy.
“Look objectively at your own situation to see what the factors are,” says Jewell. “Then talk it over with a friend, colleague or a coach to get their perspective.” Isolating the root cause of job dissatisfaction can take some effort, she acknowledges, but it will pay off in the long term. “Until you understand why you don’t love your job today, you won’t know what to look for in the future.”
• Determine a course of action.
“This involves assessing risks and opportunities, pros and cons,” says Griffin. “Before you challenge the status quo, you have to anticipate the consequences. Ask others for their feedback. Build a Plan A and a Plan B. And this is really important; consider the support system you have to help you.”
• Select and execute a specific strategy.
This might include opening lines of communication with your boss, talking to someone in human resources, finding a mentor or looking for other opportunities in your organization, they say.
• Evaluate and refine your plans.
It can be often said that women and female employees experience more than their share of disrespect and
poor treatment by the agents of society and management. “My job is to manage”. Yet when asked few in these position can explain what this means other than “I am the manager” and similar mantras. When applying what might be considered downright foolish behavior - such as the “we know routine “ or pointing to graphs and charts on the wall where the rules are one sided if not indeed stacked and informing victims that “I am just doing my job”. Similar answers and mentalities could be expected of border guards or policemen / women issuing tickets at a speed trap whose only purpose is that of revenue collection - little else.
It can be best said that if a women does rise to management then their attempts to be firm or forthright
with male employees may be more than difficult. Employers have traditionally paid women less than women as “men have to raise a family”. How that logic and argument does not apply to single parent households where the mother is the provider and wage earner is somewhat elusive.
It seemed that John felt that “he needed a job”. So much for peer and family pressure all meaning well.
However John was having trouble finding a job that paid enough . He had worked in the produce department of a grocery store but had quit because the pay was so low. Desperate he decided to apply for such a position , even though he resented the low wages and no benefits.
Finally he found an actual opening. The grocer offered x amount a week $ to manage the produce section of the supermarket. John agreed. Workers often react and respond to unfair treatment by ripping off the company. In the end neither side benefits to any degree - both are being taken advantage of . No one is ahead at the end of the day. Not the employer who has problems of employee theft and low morale. Not the workers who seldom put in an honest days work , and are best are scheming at how to get more off the shelf goods. So much for good value and proper effective management tactics and procedures.
The latest major business news is a case in point and example of bankruptcy or responsibility and indeed morality of upper or even middle management… On the one hand the privileges and perks of management – and of course the large bonuses awarded to executives , even as they destroy and shut down the productive elements of their organizations is something that is “god given” , their “entitlements”. “I am entitled”.
You may hear the spouting of slogans of “I accept responsibility”. But when it comes to action and acceptance where are these same types. It not unlike the United Nations soldiers who themselves may be charged with abuses, or in Lebanon on not seeing the return of terrorists under their very noses. What are these people in charge of?
What are they being paid for? It’s all the emperors’ clothes with no shortage of “Cannabis” and “Yes Men” in the wings.
Anyone who has been at an airport can tell you that someone is terribly wrong. But where are the F.C.C. and its upper management at all. Ditto that for the financial markets. Freddie Mac or Fannie Mae Stock was going to hell in a hand basket. Turn on a radio or TV set in the last year and all you heard was of the looming crisis and whether for Canadians was it a good time to buy a home in Phoenix or wait for worst to come. Yet no one in upper management or in politics was aware of this. It’s as if they were all just putting in time. How sad.
It is most interesting to note the family life of these management ? types . That is if they have a family life . It may just be the case that ” a hole in any port “ is the best idea of any relationship to them. It may have been said by your grandmother that ” if they steal from others … they will steal from you.” That is in the same way they treat employees on the job … never ever being able to realize that you get a lot more productivity and in the end result profit with honey and human kindness than with vinegar. In the same way they treat their employees thus follow their interpersonal relationships. Any relationships that they have may be based on raw power and I am the boss. If that fails they may attempt to control other members in their group or family with other measures of power - such as money , and purchasing objects for them or even in extreme cases with allowances and provisions of dangerous drugs such as cocaine or narcotics. The basis rules and procedures are not far off of a how a pimp treats their workers or prostitutes although it may be said in many cases the pimp is a better overall manager and motivator than many managers in the workforce. Pimps may not have such pathological behaviors and forces running their lives.
Selling out is “selling out” your principles. Although it is and seems wrong you may have to do from time to time. Perhaps your boss is an idiot - a moron - who believes by kytowing you he has great power. It is an interesting lesson in life that in the end we have little control over much of anything. And yet many live their lives in a vain attempt to control others - even declaring it in grandiose terms such as “The Rules are Golden and THEY ARE MY RULES”. You would expect such thoughts and management behavior from the Gestapo not in a business where the end result is supposed to be productivity not control of others. And yet many management types act in this vain attempt that somehow that they have great control overs ( at least in front of their faces). They probably fall asleep ( if not in a drunken stupor) of repeating this mantra of “The Rules are Golden and They are MY RULES”. King of the playpen , Morons of the world
Have you ever secretly thought that a colleague – or even your boss – behaves like a psychopath? Well you may well be right.
A study published in New Scientist magazine has found that there are far more sub-criminal psychopaths - self-serving, narcissistic schemers who display a stunning lack of empathy, but are not criminally inclined - at large in the population than had previously been thought. And many of them end up in managerial positions.
Around one per cent of the population – or 600,000 people in Britain alone – can be categories as psychopathic, according to Professor Robert Hare of the University of British Columbia in Canada.
And because ‘corporate psychopaths’ display similar ruthless traits to sadistic killers, they often gravitate towards roles in business the media, law and politics where their scheming and bullying is just part of everyday working life.
They tend to be manipulative, arrogant, callous, impatient, impulsive, unreliable, superficially charming and prone to fly into rages. They break promises, take credit for the work of others and blame everyone else when things go wrong.
If you do your research about much dollars , cash or money that you can expect to be paid by your new or next employer then you are on the graveytrain. This can perhaps be determined through the interview process.
It is an intereresting concept. Practice interviews. Its not unlike practicing having teeth pulled or limbs ripped off or practicing hunger or deprivation . Practice interviews and interviewing can be similar to “dress rehearsals” or football practice. You might try or wish to fine tune your answers to questions or work on your abilities to maintain a condition of aliveness. You may need to try one one i f you have not figured out what your next “bottom line” salary minimum is or should be.
Practice interviews can range from going to people to people in your field for advice to actually pursuing job interviews. Either way will show you how to put your efforts and road map into practice before tackling the “real thing”.
But get all your practicing down long before you show up for your important job interviews. Those are the ones that you want to crack wide open.
One of the most common ways and means that managers and executives play it safe and within the “rules” is to rigidly adhere to “budgets” and the “numbers” as if these were carved in stone and came from the heavens. Its all about non risk taking - why bring attention to yourself or your superior/ boss. Never take chances but blame your workers for anything yet take credit for anything positive that occurs. Its all about keeping those corporate “perks” or “entitlements” not about the profit or health that the firm might profit from. “I am entitled” “Those are just salesman / workers / peons”. Talk about anal retentive behavior.
The words “its not in the budget” or ‘x, y , zee committee will have to examine it” have rebounded from the dawn of time and have probably squelched more innovation than can ever be found in the universe. Yet these same idiots will sure take credit for results when some poor employee in an effort to please his superior or even keep their paycheck goes out on the limb to adopt the procedures / against stated policies and procedures. Guess what happens if “things don’t work out”.
The conservative mentality at many present corporations and management often goes without any question or inquiry - it just is a fact of life taken at face value - not unlike how wife beating or chasing cars that cut off a driver are seen as perfectly normal and acceptable behavior in many abnormal pathological families of origin.
As an example the conservative mentality at Proctor and Gamble lives on. New ideas are tested in focus groups for promotion , ad copy or package first in a focus group , then in a city , region and eventually the country.
This procedure was down without question as if there were no differences what so ever in populations ,regions languages or even ages. Different people and different types of people in different surroundings may well think , act and purchase products differently based on different preferences and parameters and yet after the purchase or decision may have different types of post cognitive dissonance.
It can often be the situation - that bringing in an outside expert can hurt more than help. Hinder more than any way help. It has been oft quoted than an expert is any one 50 - 75 miles away from home. In these days of rapid transport - that is a small commute. Luckily the high cost of gasoline may deal with this plague.
At least the scourge and abuse of high gas prices has one benefit - perhaps less intimidation and abuse of visiting privledges by management and “outside consultants”. Perhaps now before they get in the car they will think of the cost of gas before they drive. That is unless they have the perks of a company car and gas card. Then it may be of their benefit to use the card to show their power ( entitlement) and just as importantly dilute their own personal mileage.
A perk of management can well be said to be anything in the realm of management payment and rewards that cannot be justified.
If nothing else is sacred - your self worth as well as personal integrity should be.
Do not let management make “mince meat” out of you in order to preserve their “sacred cows”
Your remain the same person that you were with or without their approval. Their approval or pat on your head (or threats ) mean little. You were the same person regardless - the same person who woke up in the morning ,who got in the car or bus. Your intrinsic value remains the same regardless. Resist the magic swoop of logic that somehow the minute you don’t fall to their wishes , or miss a production , sales or other corporate ( top floor ) target you are somewhow of less value as a human being . Magic ( and most faulty logic). Have them look in the mirror. How on earth does missing one arbritrary target of their make you any less of a human being.
In many ways it comes down to control issues on their part - pathological on their part. If anyone has problems it is them . Look in the mirror. Look at your own order book sonny.
By Now , you may well have a clearer sense of your what you are encountering in your workplace in terms of your firms / manager’s sacred cows. How downright foolish.
And yet you are forced to endure endless management meetings and retreats - blah blah competition , work smarter , harder , blah blah blah - the team is all rowing in the same direction rah rah , management direction…..
Put those sacred cows out to pasture - or even shoot them.
Then again it may reduce your air travel points - which are one of managements most sacred and trusted reliable cows and source of god given , not to be ever questioned perks.
The following questions may well help you to identify sacred cows or “the sacred cows” in your organization or workplace setting.
Wikipedia defines sacred cow as “The term sacred cow has passed into the English language to mean an object or practice which is considered immune from criticism, especially unreasonably so.[1][2] The phrase is based on a popular understanding of the status of cows as ’sacred’ in some Asian religions.”
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sacred_cow
Further elaboration yields : ”
Sacred cow
From the Simple English Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia that anyone can change
In the relgion of Hinduism, the animal called a “cow” is thought to be sacred, or very holy. Most Hindus respect the cow for her gentle nature which represents the main teaching of Hinduism, non-injury (ahimsa). The cow also represents ghee and strength . Hindus do not worship the cow, but the cow is very honored in society, and most Hindus do not eat beef (the meat that come from cows). By honoring this gentle animal (living thing that isn’t a plant) that gives more than it takes, Hindus honor all creatures.
In Hinduism, the cow is a symbol wealth, strength, abundance, selfless giving and a full Earthly life.
It is not known whether the cow was sacred and forbidden in the Hindu diet from ancient Vedic times. However, reverence for cows can be found in all the religion’s major texts.
The cow gives milk and cream, yogurt and cheese, butter and ice cream, ghee and buttermilk. The milk of a cow is believed to refine a person. The ghee (clarified butter) from the milk is used in ceremonies and in preparing religious food. Cow dung is used as fertilizer, as a fuel and as a disinfectant in homes. Modern science states that the smoke from cow dung is a powerful disinfectant and is good against pollution. The cow’s urine is also used for religious ceremonies as well as for medical reasons.”
http://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sacred_cow
It is best to start off by identifying the “cows”, but at the moment don’t rush headlong into trying to herd the cows , chase them away or even deprive them of food , nutrition ( cash salary). For example the ritual of going through “junk mail “ or “spam” was one person’s self acknowledged sacred cow
A procedural list for sacred cows
1) List any systems , procedures. policies or habits that are outdated and that can be changed
note - the worst organizations often have the best procedures and procedure manuals. They have little else to do. The prosperous , upgoing companies are often on the fly “doing work”. They have no time to revamp systems. There is productive work to do. Yet their systems are often hodge podge and ramshackle -leaving new employees confused. Some “management type: often has to take them down the right of inconsistencies and simply tell them ” It makes no sense but this is how its done”.
2) What are the aspects of the jobs that you like the least , that are seen as “a drag” or “drags” and wear you and other employees or seem like ‘busywork”
3)Which of any of the sacred cows are policies and procedures inherited from predecessors or idiot former managers ( some of which may be ceo’s at present)
4) Sacred cows which come courtesy of another department but can never be challenged due to “turf” and “control “ issues. You would think that you are working for different firms or at the least are on another planet. What a bunch of stupidiyt.
5) If you can visualize yourself going through a typical day , week, month or even year is there a list of routines at the office. Mail comes in such a time , person c takes it from desk to desk. It can never be done any other way or panic sets in . Sounds familiar. Why not break these routines - at least for fun
If you think if a comedy group - second city , Saturday night live - were to attend most businesses and organizations they would have more fodder for material than they could handle in a lifetime - all with these sacred cows
