#75: Hearing your own echoes
You can be sure that the people in your organization understand the most important rule of organizational life: Keep the boss happy at all cost. Why? Because the boss decides on salary increases, bonuses, promotions, and so on.
The kings of old showed how those in power react to bad news: the bearer lost his head. Hints of what we can expect from those in power have conditioned us to pass on good news rather than bad; – to tell the king what we think he wants to hear; – to leave the bad news to someone else; – to let a colleague be the one to lose her job.
The result? The poor boss at the top, must make decisions of great import based on a steady stream of good news.
So be warned: If you listen only to what your subordinates or advisors tell you, then you are most likely hearing your own echoes.
I’m james@nonsenseatwork.com
Copyright: 2007 James Henry McIntosh
James can be heard on Public Radio, 88.9 FM WCVE, Richmond VA.
Monday - 7:19am and Saturday - 8:19am
The kings of old showed how those in power react to bad news: the bearer lost his head. Hints of what we can expect from those in power have conditioned us to pass on good news rather than bad; – to tell the king what we think he wants to hear; – to leave the bad news to someone else; – to let a colleague be the one to lose her job.
The result? The poor boss at the top, must make decisions of great import based on a steady stream of good news.
So be warned: If you listen only to what your subordinates or advisors tell you, then you are most likely hearing your own echoes.
I’m james@nonsenseatwork.com
Copyright: 2007 James Henry McIntosh
James can be heard on Public Radio, 88.9 FM WCVE, Richmond VA.
Monday - 7:19am and Saturday - 8:19am
posted by James Henry McIntosh at
7:18 AM
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