Comments

For a blog with a similar focus, see http://funnybusiness.typepad.com/funnybusiness/.

Posted by Bill Harris at December 5, 2006 7:16 PM

That Google comment's straight out of Dilbert, isn't it? One of my favorite comments came from the CEO of a software company I worked for. We had managed to squander $40M worth of investment money without earning a penny, and the investors were talking about putting a turnaround guy in. Our CEO's reaction: "The investors are trying to screw us." (Talk about not being able to distinguish the screwer from the screwee!)

Posted by Maureen Rogers at December 5, 2006 10:32 PM

The web site www.corporateoppression has loads of stories of coprotate woes, some too hard to believe.

Posted by Steve Gray at December 6, 2006 5:36 AM

Okay, I'll stick my neck out and incur the resulting wrath. Dilbert and his like suck. Clever humor but whose lot does it improve? As someone who's worked in the cubicle world and as someone who's spent alot of years managing in the cubicle world, I've got a problem with people who DON'T do either telling those who DO it everyday that they're miserable and they're the victims of jerks. I've observed brainless, thoughtless, mind-fart behavior in the cubicles; in the executive suite; in the consulting world; on the football field; at horse shows, dog shows, swim meets, track meets..... Anyplace you find people, you can find examples of dumb human behavior if that's what you're looking for. This is a world filled with people who've been fed a diet of "you're being victimized" (by whom?)and they're waiting to be rescued (again, by whom?). Stop feeding them! If they're confronted with "dumb," push back. If they hate it, get out! Stop (adding to) the whining.

Ed

Posted by Ed Di Gangi at December 6, 2006 7:35 AM

Maureen & Ed - can identify with your comments: soooooo much waste in corporate-world. And Ed I agree - be a Free Agent First - be financially independent by living a minimalist lifestyle - then you have the radical POWER to take risk & career-shop constantly.

Luckily @ 26 I became independent [real estate] AND went with a minimalist lifestyle to make it last AND stayed with US government for 30 years because it is FUN [wonderful pension] - maybe that is it - have FUN in corporate-world ...

Posted by sean_free_agent at December 6, 2006 9:09 AM

>an office job is like a prison sentence.

Having done both, I'm happy to confirm they're very different.

;-)

Posted by gulliver at December 6, 2006 9:40 AM

During my years in Corporate America I often dealt with people who hated their jobs but the "golden handcuffs" prevented (at least in their minds) they're moving on to something else. So, I resolved very early on to live so as to make the threat of getting fired (riffed, whatever) meaningless. I was not going to sell my self-respect, soul and happiness for the illusion of security and status.

And, I also used Tom Peter's Brand You as a mantra for when I was stuck (for a while) in toxic, seemingly hopeless environments. Can't control others and their actions, but I can control how I act, react, and live. After all, "Living well is the best revenge!"

Posted by Mary Schmidt at December 6, 2006 11:04 AM

Ed - thank you for a profound dose of common sense. I read Viktor Frankl's autobiography a few years ago and it crystallised a lot of things that were swishing around my mind at the time. I now accept that I can't really affect the way other people behave or treat me or speak to me but I can choose how I react to it. Just because someone makes a dumb remark doesn't make them a dumb person: maybe they've had a bad day or they've got huge domestic worries and they've just snapped - heaven knows, most of us do it sometimes. And I don't have to fall into the trap of responding to dumb with more dumb. And if I'm unhappy where I work, I can either move on or deal with it. I guess it's called dignity.

Posted by Mark JF at December 6, 2006 11:13 AM

Please take the time to read this weeks cover story in Business Week - "No Schedules, No Meetings, No Joke" inside Best Buy's radical reshaping of the workplace. It is a thought provoling article on how we work, where we work and what really matters.

Posted by Tom at Proteus at December 6, 2006 11:46 AM

A shout between cubicals overheard by me in the government defense plant where I work, "Hey George, what time is your 10:00 meeting?" And these people are building weapon systems!!!

Posted by Al at December 6, 2006 11:57 AM

One of my favorite humorous marketing oriented business blogs is Pink Slip: http://www.pinkslipblog.blogspot.com/

Posted by Rick at December 6, 2006 12:15 PM

http://www.businessweek.com/magazine/content/06_50/b4013001.htm

Tom [above] - there is the story you mention - AND it is fascinating that it is bottom up created. Virtual is a lucky lifestyle I love & end up putting more into career - career-life blender fun - in a cycle of Golds' & massage & ski & runs & 2nd home visits & similar sensual-spiritual pursuits ...

Posted by sean_going_wild at December 6, 2006 12:27 PM

Ed makes some excellent points about idiotic behavior happening everywhere - and at all levels, but there's a difference between whining about it and letting yourself feel victimized, which is non-productive and not all that interesting - and taking it in stride and having some fun with the workplace foibles. It's the human comedy - ya gotta laugh.

Posted by Maureen Rogers at December 6, 2006 5:44 PM

Sometimes I wish people be tested before allowing them to touch a computer.

Posted by Felix Enescu at December 7, 2006 5:12 PM

What terrific wisdom from Ed – thank you sir!! Sorry guys just have to mention The Eagles (haven’t done one so for a while) and their wonderful track 'Get over it.'

I spent 35 years working towards getting a senior position in healthcare management and once I had achieved that I finally grew up and realised it was time to leave and, as my late beloved Dad would have said, – ‘Get a proper job'.

Why the hell did I work and drive myself to the edge of insanity to get the status that doesn’t actually mean anything to anyone other than me? Two years on I finally realise what crap all that ‘status stuff’ is – designed solely to please the office occupant.

Posted by Trevor Gay at December 7, 2006 6:50 PM

Great discussion.

I feel the quoted VP-IT guy conversation is a good sign that finally the industrial age corporates and their mindsets are making a (slow) transition into the wisdom age. There are a large number of CEOs/managers around us who dont use the power of internet's interconnectivity at all and does n't want to change. Would you call them as idiots?

Trevor - at the end of the day what matters is finding one's own voice and inspiring all others to find theirs. You are doing a good job. I too love to come out of the rat race, hop off the fast track at the earliest, and enjoy the simple pleasures of life. Wish me good luck :-)

Posted by VK Narayanan at December 9, 2006 4:37 AM

VK - thank you for your kind comments and yes of course I hope you ‘come out of the rat race.’ I did it two years ago with no guarantees of income and I still have to live month to month financially. I have a mantra that says ‘if I don’t work I don’t eat.’ It’s like hanging – it concentrates the mind. But guess what - I am still alive and more importantly I have never been happier :-) Comfort blankets are made to throw away.

Posted by Trevor Gay at December 9, 2006 4:40 PM

There's a 'View from the Cube' article in Sunday's Boston Globe (http://bostonworks.boston.com) that touches upon overheard conversations...

Posted by Glenn H. Myers at December 11, 2006 11:17 AM

They were probably referring to "Google desktop" or some such utility, which cannot be installed on your computer without administrative rights.

So who's stupid now? The problem with trying to look clever by sneering at others is that you more often than not reveal your own ignorance. That’s why Tom is bang-on right when he says never talk your competitors down.

Posted by John at December 19, 2006 3:06 PM