Wednesday, January 24, 2018
10 Signs You Work For A Jerk
If you have worked at more than one place in your life, chances are you have had one or more bad managers. It ultimately falls on the organization to weed out the management that represents them poorly. Sometimes though, the problem is deeper. The system is broken, the well has been poisoned, the milk has gone bad. Company culture is a tough thing to nail down. It can take years to build a great company culture and just one bad apple to break it down. When you are looking for a job it is important that you understand what type of environment you want to work in. In today’s post, I will discuss 10 signs your workplace is sour, and you should seek other employment. Some of these you can spot a mile away, others you may have to peel back the onion to get to the bottom of it.
1) Progressive discipline
I think we have all worked for places that have progressive discipline. This is the kind of punishment that escalates the more times you do it. If you are late once, a warning, late twice a written letter, late three times and so on. This is the type of punishments that are meant for third graders and have no place in our modern society. It reminds me of the 3 strike rule of certain state’s penal codes in America. You go to jail twice and the third time you steal a pack of gum and get sent away for life. This type of discipline has no place in a knowledge-based economy so if you see it as a policy, run for the hills.
2) They take your money
There is absolutely no reason whatsoever for you to have to pay to be at work, ever. I have worked in places where the employers literally steal from the employees. It is not a privilege to have a job, it is a privilege to be an owner. To have other individuals do work for you in exchange for pay that is less than their worth is a luxury. That luxury does not include taking their money from them. This includes time theft. Red flag: if you get shorted hours. Red flag: if you don’t get paid overtime. Red flag: if you don’t get holiday pay because they found some sort of loophole. It is against the spirit of a good work environment to do such things and it should not be tolerated. I could write a book about this point.
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3) No regular raises
There is a nasty little thing that affects us all, its called inflation. Every year your dollar is worth a little less than it used to be. You see it every day: Your coffee costs more, your gas costs more, your lunch costs more, your rent goes up. It is a simple fact of life. Don’t believe me ask your grandma how much her first house cost. It is imperative that your wage keeps up with inflation. Not only will your purchasing power decrease, but your overall well being will also diminish. If a job doesn’t give people raises annually, run for cover because in ten years you will be making 20% less than you make now.
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4) Bad reputation
While jaded ex-employees can fly off the handle for no reason, often bad reputations come from true experiences. A few instances can be looked at with a grain of salt, but some places have a huge cloud hanging over them. If you spot this, do your best to avoid them. Also, look at the source of the information. I know some very good people who are hard workers and they feel the same as the flakes who worked at the same organization. That should tell you something.
5) Politics
I love politics, but not in the workplace. Workplace politics can ruin the environment. Favoritism, selective discipline, and ego-based decision making bring down a mood big time. If there is no rhyme or reason to what is going on at a place in terms of management, chances are politics are running the show. This is where ass-kissers rain supreme and free thinkers get shunned. We all must remember that dynamic people make dynamic employees and sometimes that requires dealing with people who stand up for themselves. Be dynamic, don’t be an ass-kiss.
6) Nepotism
Just like Jared Kushner becoming Trump’s problem solver in the White House, workplace nepotism in our lives is very destructive. I have seen children of owners not only not do their job, but actively ruin the workplace in the process. You must understand that if a key position is being held by family members of management, you will never get that spot, ever. That should be enough motivation for you to leave immediately. Your talents will never surpass their blood relation.
Nepotism is a sign of terrible leadership
7) High turnover
Who likes looking for a new job? I have never met anyone who enjoys job hunting. If you encounter a workplace with a high turnover, red lights should be going off in your mind. Why would people not stay here long? Why would they rather risk being unemployed for a period of time than stay here? Why do 10 people need to be hired to maybe find one key fit? This is where you see certain places will take almost anyone. This is where you will also see that people with experience are often frowned upon because they threaten the people in charge. They would rather have drones they can mold, than people who know what they are doing from day one. It’s a numbers game and soon your number will get called, so leave before that happens, on your terms.
8) Everyone is in a bad mood
Ever walk into work and notice that there is a cloud hanging over the place. You might be able to spot it during the interview as well. Chances are if numerous people complain about working somewhere, the place is a steamy pile of you know what. I love going to work, and so should you. It should be exciting, fun and challenging. If you are at a place that isn’t, use it for what it is worth than leave. Understand how your work environment affects your mood, and adjust accordingly. If you are now a mean person because of work, a change might be necessary.
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9) Fear as a motivator
I am a history buff and a great indicator of how not to run anything is by fear. This is where you see people willing to get shot to leave dictatorial regimes. An organization will never reach its full potential if fear is the main motivator. If you scared of losing shifts, losing seniority, or losing pay, you will never be able to perform your job properly. The ultimate motivator should be gratitude and money. Gratitude so you receive the praise that is due, and money so you can live the life you wish. If the fear level is high and the gratitude and money levels are low, it is not a good workplace.
10) Performance-based management
This is ever popular in the corporate world. If you have to complete a series of tasks to meet some sort of arbitrary objective set by people who don’t do that job, then you are in for a world of hurt. What that leads to is people cutting corners just to reach that level. Others feel disillusioned if they are falling behind. Overall, no one enjoys being graded on reaching bonus levels and that is where you find exposes like what happened at TD Bank come to light. People should never have to do what is ethically or morally wrong just to keep their job. Setting up a performance-based system does just that. It promotes dishonesty, jealousy and hurts everyone along the way. Targets are bullshit and always have been. The group should have the ambition to better the organization and that should be the goal. That is the way to flourish, not by dividing the group apart to accomplish arbitrary performance-based goals.
These are just a few of the things I have noticed in several workplaces that rub me the wrong way. Ultimately, we all react differently to different situations, so you have to decide what you can and cannot tolerate. No workplace will be perfect, so you must balance your survival with what you are willing to deal with. Keep an eye out for these red-flags as you move along with your career journey.
“Leaders are made, they are not born. They are made by hard effort, which is the price which all of us must pay to achieve any goal that is worthwhile.” – Vince Lombardi
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