Friday, April 20, 2007

All in how you look at it

I want she wants he wants we wants we all want something but no one is really sure what. Do we really suffer from too many choices? Maybe a better choice of words is do we really torture ourselves with too many choices. Suffering is probably best reserved for people who have no choices.

I brought the kick ass boot out yesterday at work. I woke up fuming about a co-worker’s actions the day before, and that person disregarded my not so subtle “enough” warning and that of someone else as well. They were launching what I call the diversionary assault-jumping on me to cloud the real issue which was why something hadn’t been done.

Now I have actually taught classes in strategic e-mail and what NEVER to do. Beyond not being nice, it’s never ever a good idea to put anything blatantly wrong in writing that can easily be forwarded. It’s also extremely foolish to assume that people delete everything every day.

Finally, my title, Risk Manager, and the fact that I hang out with auditors and accountants and legal people, might lead you to believe I am pretty good about keeping the “paper trail” alive. It’s also my job to point out if something that is supposed to be done hasn’t been done, and preferably before the actual time comes to report that in front of the big dogs so that the medium dogs can take care of it.

Yet, I don’t go around dredging up stuff to make people’s lives miserable. I am an amiable person, I just want to get the job at hand done with as little fuss as possible. But, if there is one thing I can’t stand, it’s a bully. I will always step in if someone else is being bullied, always. So, what on this green earth made this idiot think that I would allow myself to be bullied?

Another thing about me that is kind of odd is that I don’t like a lot of back and forth and escalation. If I have the means to finish something, I give a fair warning and then I will drop the A- bomb in the next volley. It is a more efficient use of time and effort on everyone’s part.

I’ve learned a lot from working with my dogs-the alpha dog doesn’t run around barking and making a lot of noise-he or she just gives the order and expects it to be followed. Now, I am in no way alpha at my office, not even close, but why would you attack someone who is just doing their job, making a simple, polite, reasonable request? The funny thing is, the “loaded gun” I used, was loaded by the person who was being a jerk. This person handed me a gun, gave me ammo, and then went on the attack.

Now I know my feeble brain is trying to make sense of this and align it with the Virginia shootings somehow. It would be like that fellow handing all the students loaded rifles and THEN going on his assault. I just don’t get it.

Anyway, the little skirmish did free me from some angst-here was a clear problem and a clear solution. And, because it was a clear cut case of self defense, it was a righteous bit of ass kicking. And maybe that is my answer to yesterday’s question-maybe that guy in Virginia felt righteous about what he did.

Perspective is a weird thing, isn’t it?

No comments: