Point Lookout: a free weekly publication of Chaco Canyon Consulting
Volume 15, Issue 14;   April 8, 2015: Why We Don't Care Anymore

Why We Don't Care Anymore

by

As a consultant and coach I hear about what people hate about their jobs. Here's some of it. It might help you appreciate your job.
A laptop with password stickies

A laptop with password stickies

Here's a collection of lightly edited expressions of frustration, disdain, and disbelief about jobs today, and about how people in those jobs are managed. Some are based on specific reports that have come my way, and some are mixtures of reports from several people. Any similarity to your situation is both coincidental and unfortunate.

  • Twice they've laid off my best friends. Time to go.
  • Whenever layoffs happen, I get more work and no raise.
  • I used to "stretch" to deliver superior performance, only to be rated "meets expectations." I thought, "What a lie," but now I realize that stretching myself was their expectation.
  • The only thing I hate more than being told to undo what somebody just finished is being told to undo what I just finished.
  • I take that back. I hate even more being told to do something that I know somebody will have to undo as soon as I'm finished.
  • If meetings were any more mind numbing, they'd be classified as illegal drugs.
  • I used to trust my boss to tell me what was really going on. I now realize that he doesn't actually know.
  • I liked my old boss better than my new boss. Neither of them knows what they're doing, but my old boss at least knew that he didn't know.
  • I don't know what's worse: (a) my boss making decisions about stuff he's clueless about, without consulting us; or (b) my boss asking our advice, and then not taking it. Wait, it's (a). At least with (a) he doesn't waste our time before making the wrong decision.
  • Two things are If meetings were any more mind
    numbing, they'd be classified as
    illegal drugs.
    mysterious about Steve: (a) how he spends his time, because he sure doesn't do his job; and (b) how he gets away with it.
  • Only one way the cafeteria could be worse: if they raised the prices. Ah. They just did. Never mind.
  • I stuck sticky notes on my wall with fake passwords to fool password thieves. Then IT ran a surprise inspection and wrote me up. I told them the passwords were fake, but they said no passwords on the walls, real or fake. The I in IT must stand for idiotic.
  • I got used to my boss not keeping her promises, but I can't get used to her denying she ever made them.
  • I have so much work that I can't focus on anything long enough to remember where I was when I had to drop it to do something more urgent.
  • I used to tolerate the bad parts of my job because I loved the good parts of my job. Now I don't even know what the good parts of my job are.
  • Why am I classified as a "resource?" I'm a human being.

That's all for now. I'm collecting these items, so send me yours, and when I get a batch together, I'll send them out. Go to top Top  Next issue: Overconfidence at Work  Next Issue

52 Tips for Leaders of Project-Oriented OrganizationsAre your projects always (or almost always) late and over budget? Are your project teams plagued by turnover, burnout, and high defect rates? Turn your culture around. Read 52 Tips for Leaders of Project-Oriented Organizations, filled with tips and techniques for organizational leaders. Order Now!

Your comments are welcome

Would you like to see your comments posted here? rbrenyrWpTxHuyCrjZbUpner@ChacnoFNuSyWlVzCaGfooCanyon.comSend me your comments by email, or by Web form.

About Point Lookout

This article in its entirety was written by a 
          human being. No machine intelligence was involved in any way.Thank you for reading this article. I hope you enjoyed it and found it useful, and that you'll consider recommending it to a friend.

This article in its entirety was written by a human being. No machine intelligence was involved in any way.

Point Lookout is a free weekly email newsletter. Browse the archive of past issues. Subscribe for free.

Support Point Lookout by joining the Friends of Point Lookout, as an individual or as an organization.

Do you face a complex interpersonal situation? Send it in, anonymously if you like, and I'll give you my two cents.

Related articles

More articles on Personal, Team, and Organizational Effectiveness:

A hiker on a pathPaths
Most of us follow paths through our careers, or through life. We get nervous when we're off the path. We feel better when we're doing what everyone else is doing. But is that sensible?
The Western Electric Plant at Hawthorne, IllinoisTen Reasons Why You Don't Always Get What You Measure: II
Although many believe that "You get what you measure," metrics-based management systems sometimes produce disappointing results. In this Part II, we look at the effects of employee behavior.
U.S. Unemployment Rate in percentFinding Work in Tough Times: Strategy
If you're out of work and discouraged — or getting there — you're in great company. Better than ever before. Getting back to work starts with getting to work on finding work. Here's a collection of strategies for the job of finding work.
A stretch of the Amazon rain forest showing storm damageUnnecessary Boring Work: II
Workplace boredom can result from poor choices by the person who's bored. More often boredom comes from the design of the job itself. Here's Part II of our little catalog of causes of workplace boredom.
An egg sandwichThe Power and Hazards of Anecdotes: I
Anecdotes are short stories — sometimes just a single sentence. They're powerful tools of persuasion, but they can also be dangerous, to both anecdote tellers and anecdote listeners.

See also Personal, Team, and Organizational Effectiveness and Personal, Team, and Organizational Effectiveness for more related articles.

Forthcoming issues of Point Lookout

A game of Jenga underwayComing September 4: Beating the Layoffs: I
If you work in an organization likely to conduct layoffs soon, keep in mind that exiting voluntarily before the layoffs can carry significant advantages. Here are some that relate to self-esteem, financial anxiety, and future employment. Available here and by RSS on September 4.
A child at a fork in a pathAnd on September 11: Beating the Layoffs: II
If you work in an organization likely to conduct layoffs soon, keep in mind that exiting voluntarily can carry advantages. Here are some advantages that relate to collegial relationships, future interviews, health, and severance packages. Available here and by RSS on September 11.

Coaching services

I offer email and telephone coaching at both corporate and individual rates. Contact Rick for details at rbrenyrWpTxHuyCrjZbUpner@ChacnoFNuSyWlVzCaGfooCanyon.com or (650) 787-6475, or toll-free in the continental US at (866) 378-5470.

Get the ebook!

Past issues of Point Lookout are available in six ebooks:

Reprinting this article

Are you a writer, editor or publisher on deadline? Are you looking for an article that will get people talking and get compliments flying your way? You can have 500-1000 words in your inbox in one hour. License any article from this Web site. More info

Follow Rick

Send email or subscribe to one of my newsletters Follow me at LinkedIn Follow me at X, or share a post Subscribe to RSS feeds Subscribe to RSS feeds
The message of Point Lookout is unique. Help get the message out. Please donate to help keep Point Lookout available for free to everyone.
Technical Debt for Policymakers BlogMy blog, Technical Debt for Policymakers, offers resources, insights, and conversations of interest to policymakers who are concerned with managing technical debt within their organizations. Get the millstone of technical debt off the neck of your organization!
Go For It: Sometimes It's Easier If You RunBad boss, long commute, troubling ethical questions, hateful colleague? Learn what we can do when we love the work but not the job.
303 Tips for Virtual and Global TeamsLearn how to make your virtual global team sing.
101 Tips for Managing ChangeAre you managing a change effort that faces rampant cynicism, passive non-cooperation, or maybe even outright revolt?
101 Tips for Effective MeetingsLearn how to make meetings more productive — and more rare.
Exchange your "personal trade secrets" — the tips, tricks and techniques that make you an ace — with other aces, anonymously. Visit the Library of Personal Trade Secrets.
If your teams don't yet consistently achieve state-of-the-art teamwork, check out this catalog. Help is just a few clicks/taps away!
Ebooks, booklets and tip books on project management, conflict, writing email, effective meetings and more.