Office "Dynamics"

Okay - the majority of us have at one point been in a position where we've had to deal with office 'politics'. It may not have been in an office per say, but you've had to deal with some "stuff" that falls under the category.

A couple of days ago, I overheard such a case. A case that is as old as prostitution (maybe not that old, but you get what I'm saying) and as shady as a mature palm tree in Florida.

So, you've been at a company for, let's say for the sake of argument, 8 years. A good round number. During those 8 years, you've accomplished much, saved the company much, and have seen more Executives come and go than you care to count. Now, in the beginning, you're gung-ho about your job and the expectations that come with it. You work late, come in on your day off and with the upgrade of technology, have worked from home when you should've been enjoying that marathon of your favorite crime show (Duh-Dun!!)

You accepted the constructive criticisms of a manager that you later deemed isn't qualified to file contracts let alone tell YOU what you need to approve on. You sit through reviews that were given, all to learn that SURPRISE! the raise you anticipated isn't what you deserve (is it ever??)

Now, here's the comedy. They tell you that "Due to the recent atmosphere of the economy, this is the best we can do.." Really? Meanwhile, the same company you've given some the best over-time hours of your life has hired, fired, and RE-hired some of the most expensive top executives a severance package can buy. They send their sales people to resort locations (along with a partner no less) while you're hammering out contracts, expenses and everything else the "Office-Slacker" won't do. I'm not going to mention the countless dollars that are wasted on a daily basis just within the office (I'll save that for another posting)

While eliminating, no excuse me "down-sizing" positions where the actual work is getting done, they continue to make these decisions without the actual employee in mind. They expect you to continue to give 100% of yourself, doing the work of 5 and pay your for 1 (if you're lucky)

But! We are to conduct ourselves accordingly because a bad attitude is contagious and spreads like wild fire in the office.

News Flash! So does bad management.

The Occasional Distraction…

It normally takes a bit to derail me, but when it happens, boy am I off track (pun intended) I can be coasting along, smooth sailing and then all of a sudden – WHAM! I hit a wall or trip over a hurdle. Now I know this should be taken as ‘normal’, we all have our ‘moments’, blah, blah, blah. But for some reason, I like to exclude myself from those types of travesties. I like to believe that I am always on point. A grave discovery I’m just now admitting that I am not. An admittance that I am choosing to share, I will consider my First Step.

The First Step toward allowing myself to have these aforementioned ‘moments’. To give myself permission to just ‘Be” and to be okay with not always being “Together”…all the time. I’m going to remember to have more talks with myself when things get out of reach and to listen when my inner self says “it’s okay, take a break”

That said, I am declaring this period my “Let It Flow…” period, referred as The Second Step. I recall a few years ago being in a similar state of mind and enjoying it. I turned down a few activities and I encouraged myself to tap into other wells of resources and strongly suggested others to do the same.

The Third and most important Step is not to get lost. I have to stay mindful of my point; to not cut off completely from others, but not be consumed. It is imperative that I stay in line with my calling to help.

The occasional distraction will be allowed…

What's The Meaning?

This is a quick one…So, I read an article this morning about the OED (Oxford English Dictionary) having the definition of “Siphon” wrong for the last 99 years. Yep, WRONG for 99 YEARS!! Something along the lines of a ‘minor’ error in the understanding of physics, gravity flow, etc. Not my strong point, but that’s my point. One of oldest forms of research, and I’m sure respected just as long had no process of follow up? (???) As a dear friend says all the time, “No check and balance” Hmmm…

What tickled me the most I think and what prompted me to write this was the explanation given for the “mistake”; the editors who defined the word were not scientists. So, it took one person to dig a little deeper to discover this almost a century later, and not just in the OED, but in other dictionaries? The article stated OED will correct the error in the next edition release.

A bonus for the dictionary market, I suppose. For those of us who still enjoy the feel of having a real book in our hands and probably have the same dictionary on our bookshelves that we used to look up our 6th grade spelling words, will now look twice at our trusted friend ‘The Dictionary’. Does this mean I will now go out and get a new one? Probably not. Will I now wonder about and question the definitions listed? Did that already.

I’m wondering if this will lead to an onslaught of “revisions” and other discoveries. Interesting to see where it will lead.

I think the guy who discovered it should’ve waited until it was 100 years; only because I like nice rounded numbers.

Green - Going

Today just about everything and everyone attached to that ‘thing’ has in one way or another gone “Green” It’s an age of an adopted consciousness of saving and re-using. From Fortune 500 companies to the little house on the corner of Elm and Main streets, recycling and using other methods to conserve energy is the latest wave.

Organizations are converting into paper-less work environments, which I have yet to see actually work 100%. I’ve witnessed (no exaggeration!) a 30 page document created, printed for signature (all 30 pages!), scanned, saved and printed again to maintain a “hardcopy” of the signed document on file. Even better, are the occasions where files consisting of about 75+ pages are scanned into databases for storage and easy access, while the hardcopies are shipped to an offsite storage space (at a ridiculous monthly rate!) and when the file is needed, employees PRINT the scanned documents because, well not everyone is as adaptable to the new paperless policy (???) Okay, I can go on and on but you kinda get what I’m trying to say about the corporate world’s idea of going Green.

Then there’s that aforementioned house on the corner Elm and Main; downsizing from the 8-passenger SUV to snazzy Hybrids for everyone in the household, unplugging phone chargers that aren’t in use, buying bigger, but energy efficient appliances, (did you catch that?)

Don’t get me wrong, going Green is great. We’re doing what should’ve been done a long time ago. But true to form, we wait until things are at a dire state before we began to take action.

Hmmm…

Another One...

As I exited from that place of dreams, right before the second or third wave of sleep kicks in, I sleepily opened my eyes to another day.
Another day - Monday.
I can hear the rain beating against the leaves drooping from the trees outside my window. It’s dark and Panther (my cat) is curled up at the foot of my bed, oblivious to the beauty going on around him (or is he?) I lay there for a few minutes and just listen. A car goes by and I hear its horn blaring, disrupting God’s symphony. It stops and I snuggle down to hear more of His rhythms. I peek over to see what time it is and realize I still have 2 more hours of sleep before I have to get up. Actually, because it’s raining I only have 90 minutes if I want to get to work on time (and we all want that, don’t we!)
Monday – the beginning of another workweek.
Another beginning of a commuting, traffic, and coffee combos. Another beginning of phony smiles and repeated forced Good Morning’s to the very people I bumped into at the mall or grocery store and they gave me that “I know you from somewhere” look, but didn’t speak, yet Monday here they are, all smiles. (Hmmm…)
Once settled, I get into a grove and whisper a prayer of thanks because this could've been the beginning of an end.