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I've seen this increasing trend of narcissism with each generation in professional settings. Usually that narcissism comes with a healthy sense of entitlement,

I've seen this increasing trend of narcissism with each generation in professional settings. Usually that narcissism comes with a healthy sense of entitlement, and it is a very disturbing trend. I've seen countless Gen Yers who work in consulting firms who have no sense to put themselves in the customer's shoes. They think it's OK for them to be taking personal calls and browsing Facebook in front of a client who is paying their firm $200/hr ("who cares what they think, as long as I'm getting my work done" is the most popular response). When they are customers, however, they have no problem berating a Starbuck's barista for taking 30 seconds too long to make their $3 latte. Seems like every conversation I have with my peers from GenX inevitably degrades into a rant about how annoying it is to manage this new generation of workers. Maybe we're just turning into cranky old geeks, I don't know.

swombat 16y ago
Consulting clients don't give a shit about your time, they care about what you get done. Having your bum on a seat isn't worth $1 an hour, let alone $200. What is worth something is the work you deliver. That work is only loosely related to the time you spend "looking like you're working". Personally, I find that regular breaks help me focus better and be more productive, and my extensive net activities help me get the help I need when I need it, which also makes me more productive. If you want to measure bum-on-seat-time instead, hire minimum wage workers.
- slantyyz 16y ago
  If all gigs were fixed price or piece-work projects, I'd buy into your argument. In the real world, you've got to deal with timelines and time+materials budgets. Do you really expect to get repeat business if your customer perceives that they're being billed for your time on Facebook? All I'm hearing from your comment is "You're lucky that I'm working for you. You need to work around MY work habits." The problem with that is that only 20% of the people who say that are rock stars. The other 80% only think they are.
cunard-n 16y ago
The behavior you describe is its own antidote for a normal person. A narcissist would blame the client. A sociopath would grab some nearby colleague and throw them under the bus. May I suggest that the trouble with narcissists is the efficiency of their thought processes: They only have to think about one person at a time...one person ever. That makes them more efficient mentally. Also, people who can't see themselves have no self-doubt. That makes them better, more efficient leaders. Also, people who are good-looking are more likely to develop these traits, and, having developed them, are less likely to have to go away and sit quietly by themselves and unlearn them. I'm speaking from experiance. I've had narcissistic, sociopathic, and "other" SOs. The Sociopaths are most fun because they don't have any fear. The narcissists are the next most fun because they tell jokes better (attention) and they try harder to get praise (attention) and they are better conversationally and socially. Ultimately? I would not go back. I like to get a massage, instead of having to give all the time, for example. But let's call a spade a spade: Good looking and fun? check! No self doubt? check! Hot in the sack? check! That's hard to learn to say no to. It takes practice, and really, to make yourself not answer the phone there has to be baggage to create that strong "I don't think so" reaction. My examples are from personal life, but similar themes apply at work and socially. Narcissists are more popular and harder to create momentum against. They are more glib, and get away with talking first and longest. It takes conscious effort and practice to get a word in and certainly if there are cliques in place, it may take effort which is not going to see long term payoff to defend a position or create momentum without a narcissist getting on board to bring the group. Is this a cause or a symptom of the founder-hacker/salesman-CEO devide?

swombat 16y ago

Consulting clients don't give a shit about your time, they care about what you get done. Having your bum on a seat isn't worth $1 an hour, let alone $200. What is worth something is the work you deliver. That work is only loosely related to the time you spend "looking like you're working". Personally, I find that regular breaks help me focus better and be more productive, and my extensive net activities help me get the help I need when I need it, which also makes me more productive. If you want to measure bum-on-seat-time instead, hire minimum wage workers.

slantyyz 16y ago
If all gigs were fixed price or piece-work projects, I'd buy into your argument. In the real world, you've got to deal with timelines and time+materials budgets. Do you really expect to get repeat business if your customer perceives that they're being billed for your time on Facebook? All I'm hearing from your comment is "You're lucky that I'm working for you. You need to work around MY work habits." The problem with that is that only 20% of the people who say that are rock stars. The other 80% only think they are.

cunard-n 16y ago

The behavior you describe is its own antidote for a normal person. A narcissist would blame the client. A sociopath would grab some nearby colleague and throw them under the bus. May I suggest that the trouble with narcissists is the efficiency of their thought processes: They only have to think about one person at a time...one person ever. That makes them more efficient mentally. Also, people who can't see themselves have no self-doubt. That makes them better, more efficient leaders. Also, people who are good-looking are more likely to develop these traits, and, having developed them, are less likely to have to go away and sit quietly by themselves and unlearn them. I'm speaking from experiance. I've had narcissistic, sociopathic, and "other" SOs. The Sociopaths are most fun because they don't have any fear. The narcissists are the next most fun because they tell jokes better (attention) and they try harder to get praise (attention) and they are better conversationally and socially. Ultimately? I would not go back. I like to get a massage, instead of having to give all the time, for example. But let's call a spade a spade: Good looking and fun? check! No self doubt? check! Hot in the sack? check! That's hard to learn to say no to. It takes practice, and really, to make yourself not answer the phone there has to be baggage to create that strong "I don't think so" reaction. My examples are from personal life, but similar themes apply at work and socially. Narcissists are more popular and harder to create momentum against. They are more glib, and get away with talking first and longest. It takes conscious effort and practice to get a word in and certainly if there are cliques in place, it may take effort which is not going to see long term payoff to defend a position or create momentum without a narcissist getting on board to bring the group. Is this a cause or a symptom of the founder-hacker/salesman-CEO devide?