A Job Well Done
My boss just congratulated me. He congratulated me on my ingenuity in doing something that he himself had told me to do. "I was really impressed that you did that." Grin. "That’s really great."
I smiled uncertainly, not sure if he was kidding.
Then I remembered an incident a month ago. I had used a form letter of his design, inserted the proper names (my only change to the document) and left a printed copy on his desk for approval. (Our company is like England, steadfastly adhering to social class and hierarchies).
The next morning I found the letter back on my desk, almost entirely covered in blue, as opposed to the usual red, ink. Boss had taken the time to effusively praise "my" writing, telling me: "It takes a lot of talent to write a succinct, straight to the point business letter that does not sacrifice form for function."
After far too long spent floundering, I have finally discovered that it takes little to no creativity to succeed in this job, just a willingness to keep quiet when praised for the work of others.
25 comments:
It's not unlike writing college papers based on material covered in lectures. Every professor has those little things that they like to say and, even more so, like to hear said. Find that thing that the person over you considers exceptional and feed it back to them. The closer you can get to verbatim without being accused of outright plaigerism, the higher the praise you'll recieve for doing the "work".
I have worked for people who rewrote my stuff and then criticized their own edits. At least your guy sticks to his guns.
This is too funny. Your boss really is out of his game. Poor guy. I had to laugh aloud at this.
Hear hear! Regurgitation is the plague of the entire workforce.
awesome. bosses are generally relieved when they can find someone to do the work as they would have done it... and you have tapped right into the source!
So you think we're all kowtowing, cap-doffing, forelock-tugging feudals over here, do you, Ms Bitch? Well let me tell you something: if my Lord of the Manor gives me permission to write to my Member of Parliament, and he gets his Party Chairman's permission to ask the Cabinet Office if he can pass on my comments to the Deputy Prime Minister's Personal Private Secretary, you could be in serious trouble, young lady. Understand? You write very nicely, by the way.
Off-target compliments are definitely strange. But on some days, you take what you can get. Enjoy the comedy show!
There is an art to keeping your own mouth shut at times.
I just discovered your blog about a week ago and it's hilarious. If I could go back in my 20's and describe my daily experiences, it would match your blog LOL. Your situation sounds so 'Dilbert' or 'Office Space'. You sound so much more talented than this job and I wish you the best of luck in the future! Don't sell yourself short and stay in a misery first job for 6 years like I did, where I finally packed up my desk gradually throughout the last week (and no one seemed to take notice, LOL!) and performed a rather colorful resignation. There are better things out there. Enjoyed your writing.
Congratulations on a successful mission! :0)
Your distraction worked much better than the one I suggested.
I really think you should angle for Scary Boss's position since it is clear that you have a better command of the situation than he.
On the other hand, the company sounds even scarier. :-O
You really ought to consider writing for a publication; judging from your blog entries to date, you'd be quite successful at it.
You are learning. Your last comment is right on. Srategically use your creativity and you will go far like me. Time to pack up and leave the office on this fine Saturday. See where success can get you!?
you need to read the poor life of this pathetic worker-bee
oops http://nowayisthishappening.blogspot.com
ment to leave the link.
Stumbled upon your blog and it is so true. My boss is the same she really just wants to see her own work. The only difference is that she wants the praise for it from both those 'below' and 'above'. A mate of mine suggested the success in business is the reward for mediocrity.
SF
A job with little or no creativity...will things change once you've stopped paying your dues?
You were finally doing it the way you were told. Why did the boss find that unusual enough to provide positive re-enforcement?
Ah, but you see, the sad unholy truth of the matter is that the man or woman seated in the God spot is usually among the most clueless and sacrificial of lambs. He/she does everything by the book - even if the book makes no sense at all. That's what happens when the key to the executive can gets passed around - the necktie becomes a noose, cutting off most air supply to the brain. Here's to the pencil pushers. May they all croak of led poisoning!
That's freakin' hilarious.
Haha, that's great! Those types of people are always entertaining. :)
very depressing ... but I am sure true for many different places.
Although I don't really work a job like yours, I can relate to working for idiots. And I really love your blog. I've been reading it for a couple of weeks. Stumbled upon it by accident.
CB,thanks for reminding me why I left the pain and sufering of the cubicle tribe behind (no offense).
Speaking of pain, I remember working in a foreign company and having a foreign boss, with a minimal command of English red-pen my memos in spite of my costly US college education.
Hang tough.
LOL!!
thankfully havent reached that stage here, yet
Haha, welcome to reality ;)
This must be what Perky does all the time. Perhaps Perky keeps a notebook of Boss Quotes which she parrots back to him at opportune moments.
Never underestimate a Boss's capacity to have a grossly over-inflated opinion of their own abilities.
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