3 ms·

Step 1) join a broken/toxic company. Theyre a lot more common than competent ones

DoreenMichele 6y ago
Going along with the BS at such a company just makes sure you aren't ever going to be qualified for a non-toxic company. There are ways to play defensively in the face of such crap. I'm not suggesting you should just let yourself be victimized while imagining that's some kind of high road. But your options don't boil down to "Be their victim or beat them at their sick game." If you believe that and choose that path, you are part of the problem, not just at the company but for the world generally. We can't make a better world if we run around justifying our shitty behavior with "But they started it!"
ineedasername 6y ago
Toxic I can't deal with. But I've made my career working in broken areas that simply didn't know how to do things better and giving them the tools to do so. It can be a weird feeling though. My proper domain of expertise is a sort of data analysis/programming mix to provide operational support for individual units to help them do their work better, but then more advanced analysis to inform the strategic directions of the entire business (well, not business: I work in Higher Ed). It's the individual units that tend to be broken though, stuck in methods of working that are anywhere from 10 to 30 years out of date. Which results in some weird experiences, because some of the most technically simple things I do for them are the ones that get the most "OMG This is Amazing!" response. Which always makes me feel like I produced a kindergarten scribbling and someone's telling me I'm DaVinci. I'm always happy to have helped, but it's hardly a "pat myself on the back" situation. One of the most extreme examples was when I took 15 minutes of so to write a SQL query and use it to automate a crosstab report sent to a group on a daily basis. They were completely floored by it. Because, not knowing how to even do a pivot table in excel, they had literally just been sorting the raw data and counting rows by hand. So, if you're in the "right" kind of broken-- but not toxic-- environment, you can still accomplish quite a bit. Even though only about 15% of my work has a high level of technical complexity, over the years it's saved my workplace tons of money, generated tons of money, and most importantly-- because this is a University-- greatly improved the experience & success of some of our students.
- redisman 6y ago
  Getting stuck on one way of doing things is one of the big drivers of badness in the workplace for sure. No matter how little sense it makes if you go from first principals today. I think many people just want to do the bare minimum and go home, which honestly I sympathize with quite a bit. ie. "who cares if its inefficient, I'll just be doing something else meaningless with that time".
- thehoff 6y ago
  This has been so close to my experience. I chuckled at the kindergarten scribbling comment as that is such a common theme. Sure there are more difficult tasks, but whenever these simple ones come up I feel a little guilty for getting any praise.

Going along with the BS at such a company just makes sure you aren't ever going to be qualified for a non-toxic company. There are ways to play defensively in the face of such crap. I'm not suggesting you should just let yourself be victimized while imagining that's some kind of high road. But your options don't boil down to "Be their victim or beat them at their sick game." If you believe that and choose that path, you are part of the problem, not just at the company but for the world generally. We can't make a better world if we run around justifying our shitty behavior with "But they started it!"

ineedasername 6y ago

Toxic I can't deal with. But I've made my career working in broken areas that simply didn't know how to do things better and giving them the tools to do so. It can be a weird feeling though. My proper domain of expertise is a sort of data analysis/programming mix to provide operational support for individual units to help them do their work better, but then more advanced analysis to inform the strategic directions of the entire business (well, not business: I work in Higher Ed). It's the individual units that tend to be broken though, stuck in methods of working that are anywhere from 10 to 30 years out of date. Which results in some weird experiences, because some of the most technically simple things I do for them are the ones that get the most "OMG This is Amazing!" response. Which always makes me feel like I produced a kindergarten scribbling and someone's telling me I'm DaVinci. I'm always happy to have helped, but it's hardly a "pat myself on the back" situation. One of the most extreme examples was when I took 15 minutes of so to write a SQL query and use it to automate a crosstab report sent to a group on a daily basis. They were completely floored by it. Because, not knowing how to even do a pivot table in excel, they had literally just been sorting the raw data and counting rows by hand. So, if you're in the "right" kind of broken-- but not toxic-- environment, you can still accomplish quite a bit. Even though only about 15% of my work has a high level of technical complexity, over the years it's saved my workplace tons of money, generated tons of money, and most importantly-- because this is a University-- greatly improved the experience & success of some of our students.

redisman 6y ago
Getting stuck on one way of doing things is one of the big drivers of badness in the workplace for sure. No matter how little sense it makes if you go from first principals today. I think many people just want to do the bare minimum and go home, which honestly I sympathize with quite a bit. ie. "who cares if its inefficient, I'll just be doing something else meaningless with that time".
thehoff 6y ago
This has been so close to my experience. I chuckled at the kindergarten scribbling comment as that is such a common theme. Sure there are more difficult tasks, but whenever these simple ones come up I feel a little guilty for getting any praise.