Tuesday, November 25, 2008

The Unbelievers

A challenge for any executive or manager is being able to identify the unbelievers.

The unbelievers are those who, although often eloquent and smooth, do not truly believe in the program. This can be the case even if the person's job is directly tied to the achievement of a certain aim. [I've encountered many equal employment opportunity officers who do not believe in equal employment opportunity and even more human resources professionals who hold enormous contempt for the organization's employees.]

A reason why it is important to know the depth of commitment is that it determines the credibility of the other person's words. There is a huge difference between the person who is simply going through the motions and one who is a passionate believer. Both groups require different strategies.

The most dangerous operators are not the consistent unbelievers but those who are willing to believe - or fake a belief - in anything out of sheer opportunism. They can shock you with their sudden and shameless shifts.

2 comments:

Dave Brock's Blog said...

Great post. To be a "Believer" takes great personal courage, commitment, and a willingness to take responsibility for the consequences of your belief.

I think the inability of lack of willingness to do this creates "Unbelievers." They can be devastating to any organization trying to accomplish anything.

Thanks for the post.

Anonymous said...

On the other hand, believers are often blind believers and don't possess a certain objectivity which can perceive the flaws in a program which do not benefit an organization. No program or manager is without them. Further, those that are willing to 'play the game' can often be a benefit because they tend to have a greater flexibility and are willing to accept change. The real problem is saboteurs who do not play the game, yet hide behind their words.