01.12.10
It’s not my fault!
Apparently, my rant about the beautiful employees of the world has caused some interest, and the material keeps flying my way. Turns out, delusion has really no end, and let’s face it, self-awareness and honesty with oneself is also highly overrated.
I am confused on the behavioral patterns. Imagine you are sitting in a meeting with a bunch of people. You are being asked what your progress on a specific project is and your answers are pretty limited to two choices “It isn’t my fault, because I have pointed fingers at others before and damn, you keep coming back to me and holding me accountable, when I didn’t do it,” or “it’s working for me!” Latter is a clear sign of a team player. “Well, too bad everything is going to hell for you guys, ’cause it’s working for me!” Should I mention now that these responses come from a lead? Probably not. How do you NOT feel like a total douche, and how is there no voice inside of you that wonders “geez, I keep getting the same feedback and results, I have nothing to show for. Maybe I AM the one who screwed up?”
What is wrong with companies? Why do they insist on thinking that a person that might be technically good will have leadership or management skills? And why is it that the incompetent morons in the work place don’t get fired, especially if they are not even full-time employees, but contractors or temps? Where are the brave souls of the world, who actually do have decision making power, when it comes to calling these guys on their crap? Why would you NOT take a person aside and hold them accountable for the role they have?
I have heard too many stories and witnessed a couple on my own, where one person was holding the company hostage. The company was so afraid to do something about these incompetent people, who divided up the work force and brought nothing but disruption and frustration to the floor, that they simply stood by and watched. I know of two people who were like that. They had given numerous reasons for immediate dismissal, but didn’t even get written up, because HR was too afraid of a law suit.
Somehow some corporations still haven’t learned the lesson. They keep putting project managers, IT guys and technically savvy people into management positions. They watch as these horrible managers run out one employee after another and how no one wants to work under them, and do nothing. Apparently, it is pretty easy to be promoted when you succeeded in a PROJECT, but not so easy to demote you if you terribly fail in management. I have met very few managers who are equally good at both.
My heart goes out to a bunch of people who are stuck with one such lead. A person who not only has yet to prove their worth, but keeps screwing up left and right, blaming everyone else and having accomplished nothing. The same person who keeps crying about being mistreated and disrespected on Facebook, while her co-workers have to work twice as hard to fix her mistakes, to then read her BS status updates on FB, which are an even bigger slap in the face.
Maybe in the future someone, somewhere will learn something from this. I do hope for a time where it is equally important to know what you are doing, to whom you know. And at the risk of sounding crazy, I DO believe that it is actually better, if you have to choose the lesser evil, to have a manager who may not know all the technical details, but knows how to lead and inspire. Until then, entire departments or teams are stuck with horrible leaders, who get the credit for the work they did, claiming they deserved it and feeling entitled to it. Worse, getting another great gig as a leader, doing the whole thing over again without consequences again, thereby keeping the cycle going.
I think it is most frustrating that these type of people won’t ever change. Being a victim or martyr is a way of being for some, who have perfected it to an art. There is no hope for them, because they don’t feel that they are doing something wrong to begin with. They don’t seek out coaching, or training but keep pointing fingers, keep feeling entitled and always being wronged. How bad is it, if you create the same reality day in and day out, year after year, and not ever wake up? And how easy is it to find like minded individuals, who never ever call you on it, but keep supporting you in your crap. And shall I say, when I went to a company gathering I didn’t see this incompetent lead sitting by herself. Nope, she was actually surrounded by a hand full of people who she has convinced about being the victim. And now tell me again that it doesn’t speak volumes about a person when you look at those they surround themselves with/call their friends. I quote again the German saying “Sag mir wer Deine Freunde sind, und ich sage Dir wer Du bist.” (Tell me who your friends are and I tell you who you are).
Thanks for the managers who coached me and called me on my crap, thereby making me a better leader. And thanks for the friends who do it in my personal life. And thank the universe for having the courage and self-awareness to seek those out who push me to become a better person, even if it stings at times.
