“He’s a real problem in the workplace,” says the HR Director. “Conflict, bad attitude, and a non-team player.”
“Why is he still working here?” I ask incredulously.
“Well he’s a genius at performing XYZ so we have no choice but to keep him. Can you recommend some training he could go to?”
Believe it or not, this scenario is more common than you think. An individual who is a complete train wreck but is kept because of their perceived value in one or more technical skills. I’ve seen physicians who sexually harass O.R. staff and are kept around because they’re brilliant surgeons. I’ve seen individuals who have hard-to-find skill that need to be fired but are retained because they are a rare talent. The organizations that fall into this trap are too afraid to address the problem and are, in a sense, held hostage by problem-children.
If you run one of those organizations, consider this your warning that you’re heading down a dangerous road. If you’re one of these individuals, rest assured one day you’re going to fall on your sword. But if you want to be someone who adds TOTAL value, then stay tuned.
Think of your performance like one of those old time balance scales. On one side, let’s put all of your positive contributions. These can be your skills, your experience, your work ethic, and your ability to get along with others. On the other side are all the things that might counterbalance. These are your quirks, bad behaviors, personality issues, and hot buttons that affect others. Your job is to keep the first half of the scales HEAVILY tipped toward the good side. If the scales balance evenly, you’re in danger of rapidly losing values. If it’s tipped heavy on the bad side, you’re either in danger of losing your job or you’re so annoying that even if you stay, you’ll forever be ostracized.
In the next few days, I’ll outline behaviors that stack up both sides of the balance. Do one set and avoid the others. I’d like you to have success at work. I hope you do too!
