Ass Covering

Strangely, I hit a point where I felt chagrined reading my posts. A feeling I am not used to...

A friend's predicament with his management prompted me to examine my values under subordination in the workplace. Hence, I found a need to jog these down:

1) One of my first building block: trust. Now, my trust in my superior is almost, if not always, blind. I figured out long time ago, that this is the best way in turn to earn his/her trust. That is my first step towards our "meeting point". Without this "meeting point", the common space and time where we can work together, I believe, things will not get done. And isn't this why we are in the office, to get things done?

2) We, the management, my superior (s) and my colleagues, are all "on the same boat". It does not matter to me who paddles the hardest to keep things afloat. And to determine whether my colleague is doing a good job or not, is not really my authority. In fact, if I feel required to cover for him or her, I will. Of course, this is to be done with his or her approval. This is called team spirit. Everyone has their strengths and weaknesses - this is the best way to leverage on each other.

And in both of these aspects, I have to be grateful to my superiors for their trust and belief in team spirit - God knows how many times they have covered my ass!

3) I was telling the same friend that all managers or superiors, each has his own strengths and weaknesses, as a person, or in his management style. So do the staff, or myself, in how we react to them. Hence, in my opinion, the best circumstance is where each has found the right match in the relationship. Otherwise, there will have to be compromises from both parties. Of course, if not, you can always leave for greener pasture.