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It's funny: I could make a list titled "8 Qualities That Will Keep You From Getting Promoted at Most Companies," and the bullet points would be roughly the same

It's funny: I could make a list titled "8 Qualities That Will Keep You From Getting Promoted at Most Companies," and the bullet points would be roughly the same. These may be great qualities for employees to have, but a lot of them are likely to be seen as liabilities. Employers may say they want free-thinking, mild eccentrics, but they create pretty much the opposite incentive structures. (Conversely, nothing gets people promoted faster than being a corporate cheerleader). Perhaps this is at the heart of what's wrong with most big firms. I don't know. But I think articles like this one need to reconcile the gaping disparity between what people say they want and what they actually seem to reward.

weff 15y ago
Pretty much; the context where this employee would thrive would mean equally amazing employers. An incompatible employee-employer relationship can't be sustained, whoever's "fault" it is.
krambs 15y ago
I worked at Sonic Foundry for many years, and 2 (Eccentric) and 3 (Know when to dial it back) were highly valued and incentivized. Most everyone there were very bright, yet independent and outgoing (and often a bit crazy). We had a blast around the office, but always knew when to buckle down when meeting deadlines or schmoozing customers. Everyone in Madison knew it was a fun place to work, which gave us a lot of the best applicants. And even if you were competent, you usually didn't last long if you didn't fit into the "culture".
kappaknight 15y ago
Haha - I know what you mean. I feel like if you have TOO much of these qualities you become un-hireable because you're probably a closet entrepreneur and many companies don't like that.
Karellen 15y ago
"Perhaps this is at the heart of what's wrong with most big firms." I think the list makes a lot more sense if you apply it to small companies. Not necessarily startups, but companies of less than, say, 30 or 40 people. Big companies seem to need to protect themselves against incompetence in ways that small companies do not. So they create more tightly defined roles and Procedures Which Must Be Adhered To, which preclude employees ignoring job descriptions, grate against eccentricities, and are not amenable to fiddling. If you have a significant fraction of these 8 qualities, I suspect you'll be happier at a small company.

weff 15y ago

Pretty much; the context where this employee would thrive would mean equally amazing employers. An incompatible employee-employer relationship can't be sustained, whoever's "fault" it is.

krambs 15y ago

I worked at Sonic Foundry for many years, and 2 (Eccentric) and 3 (Know when to dial it back) were highly valued and incentivized. Most everyone there were very bright, yet independent and outgoing (and often a bit crazy). We had a blast around the office, but always knew when to buckle down when meeting deadlines or schmoozing customers. Everyone in Madison knew it was a fun place to work, which gave us a lot of the best applicants. And even if you were competent, you usually didn't last long if you didn't fit into the "culture".

kappaknight 15y ago

Haha - I know what you mean. I feel like if you have TOO much of these qualities you become un-hireable because you're probably a closet entrepreneur and many companies don't like that.

Karellen 15y ago

"Perhaps this is at the heart of what's wrong with most big firms." I think the list makes a lot more sense if you apply it to small companies. Not necessarily startups, but companies of less than, say, 30 or 40 people. Big companies seem to need to protect themselves against incompetence in ways that small companies do not. So they create more tightly defined roles and Procedures Which Must Be Adhered To, which preclude employees ignoring job descriptions, grate against eccentricities, and are not amenable to fiddling. If you have a significant fraction of these 8 qualities, I suspect you'll be happier at a small company.