Diatribes - Myths that Mug You and Bustin' 'em

By Anthony J. Lockwood

Myths will mug you if you live by them. Unfortunately, most of us live by myths because we are closet idealists, which I like.

The myth problem is not you. It's cultural, and we need to fix it.

For example, when I was a nipper, mom always told me to own up to mistakes. "People will respect you for admitting that you made a mistake instead of trying to blame someone else or coming up with a lame excuse."

Over the years, I've learned that there is simply no basis in fact to her sentiment. In fact, living by it will get you into hot water instantaneously.

Don't believe me? Well, guys, answer "yes" if she asks you if the pants make her look fat. Ladies, answer "yes" if he asks you if you doubt that he can fix that. Tell your bosses that their bet on some technology isn't going to pay off. See? Case closed.

Another myth that we need to fix is the one that goes, "work hard and you'll be rewarded."

Oh, please. A) You'll be given more work. B) Your co-workers will believe that you are Captain Ahab's extraterrestrial love child. C) Your boss will promote someone else because he or she needs you to do all their work. D) They'll still lay you off.

Not a myth, but a career red flag is to be assigned to the honcho's grand new scheme because you are a talented, hard-working individual. This can be one of the worst things that can happen to you under the work-hard-and-you'll-be-rewarded scenario. This is a culture thing that's got to change.

You know the scene: "Big Nose, we need you, because we need all our best talent to make this a success."

You've seen it: Management gathers all the best and brightest from around the company. Tells them to go for it. A few of you might even get hauled on stage at the quarterly meeting to be honored for your efforts.

But, then, the project stalls; usually because it turns out to be an idea before its time. Sometimes, new management wants to leave its mark. Whatever the reason, suddenly, the best and the brightest are cost centers. They are either sold off or laid off.

This sort of stuff happens at a lot of companies. Managers forget that they used their best and brightest to give their idea its best shot. Then they wonder why their employees do not take risks. Answer: You trained them.

If you assigned your best to a project and it is failing, maybe your idea stinks. Maybe it's ahead of the market or technology. For example, one of the times this happened to me, back in '92, the guy who canned us explained that no one would ever be interested in the Internet.

When you lay off your best workers because the project that you bet on failed, you train the survivors to shun and run from your next great idea. In Japan, you would resign in disgrace; that's not going to happen here.

The sad reality of the work-hard- be-rewarded myth is you increase your chances of being be laid off. Managers can fix that cultural silliness, or continue to stifle their risk takers.

Lockwood
[email protected]