Comments on: Let’s try a new approach, Part 1

By: evanlapointe

evanlapointe — Fri, 04 Sep 2009 16:09:20 +0000

Aah yes. I see what you’re saying, but think about it this way: look at the amount of energy these people spend getting themselves out of these messes they’ve gotten themselves into. There is a tremendous work ethic there: they’re working their asses off to try to fool people into not firing them. And it works for longer than any one of us would want. That’s why you still work with them (or have worked with them in the past longer than you thought possible).

If they could use that work ethic productively, they could actually do something with themselves other than being a corporate skipping stone. Unfortunately for them, the mental laziness they have in between spells of hard work to get out of these tangles is what prevails.

Thomas Edison had a pretty good quote on this topic: “Opportunity is missed by most people because it is dressed in overalls and looks like work.” Instead of doing what looks like no fun, the fakers are forced work their butts off in other ways to avoid permanent unemployment.

By: Amy

Amy — Fri, 04 Sep 2009 15:22:45 +0000

Maybe I misunderstood what you were trying to say! You had written:

In essence, you have competence alone, work ethic alone, or a combination of the two.

I’ve worked with enough people whose promises are not based in their plans to actually deliver that I don’t think that practice can be referred to as “work ethic”–there is no work or ethic involved. Just hype and angry clients.

By: evanlapointe

evanlapointe — Fri, 04 Sep 2009 00:32:05 +0000

Thanks, Amy. I’m not sure I follow, though. Is my math off? Empty Promise = Lie = Ethical shortcoming?

By: Amy

Amy — Fri, 04 Sep 2009 00:22:33 +0000

Great post as usual. One thing I’m going to challenge- when people are full of it, this doesn’t mean they have “work ethic” alone. Ambition, drive, or maybe you could even call it vision, but empty promises should not be confused with ethics.