And yes, your job is probably one of them. [I'm listed twice!]
[HT: BusinessPundit ]
Commentary by management consultant Michael Wade on Leadership, Ethics, Management, and Life
If these appear to be irrational biases - and let me assure you that given the context they were irrational - that is beside the point. Critics don't require rationality; they just require a target.
One of my favorite training memories is of an evaluation from a workshop I conducted. A participant wrote that the class was substantive and well-presented and "people seemed to like it" but she didn't care for my tie. [The tie in question was a very conservative red one.] There was not a trace of humor in the rest of the evaluation so I assume she was serious.
I think of Bill Cosby every time I recall that tie.
Those are only sidelines. The main theme is the necessity to find a cause that will engage your passion and your efforts and, regardless of your personal charisma, provide you with the charisma of its mission and the self-esteem that comes from achievement. The cause is all. It gives you drive, sustains you when setbacks occur, and is far more realistic than mere positive thinking.
Persistence and a rock-solid determination not to act like a victim bolster the commitment to the cause. But so too is the pragmatic willingness to drop projects that are failures if they prove to be inadequate avenues to furthering the cause.
There were many times when I found myself arguing with Success Built to Last. "But what about this event?" and "There are exceptions to that!" came to mind more than once. I have to admit though, that the book's most powerful appeal is not the Big Hairy Audacious Goals (from Jim Collins's and Porras's Built to Last) or its interesting personal success stories.
It's the power of The Cause and how finding one can unleash creativity, strength, and energy that a quest for mere personal advancement will never unchain.
In order to avoid the mistakes cited above, HR professionals must be willing to take on their own upper management team whenever those executives threaten to harm the two main responsibilities of Human Resources. This is not easy and doing so can be risky.
But if HR is not going to speak up, who is?
And who guaranteed that you can live an ethical life without risking your job?
Part-fork, part-chop stick. Brilliant. Geekologie has the picture.
George F. Will remembers Jackie Robinson.