Categories: uncategorized
Date: 03 February 2005 19:25:28
....a couple of weeks ago, walk round a corner by the abbey and suddenly infront of me is a group of 6 40/50 something overweight corporate types (I'm guessing law or finance) with clipboards all wearing purple afro wigs.
I raise an eyebrow and walk past. Then 50 yards later there's a group of 6 or so 40 something corporate looking women with clipboards and - yes, you've guessed - yellow afro wigs. Intrigued I follow them for a while, from a safe distance. I learn that they're doing a 'team building activity'. I, perhaps sceptically, wonder to myself what kind of team they're hoping to build. I wonder to myself also whether these people were happy being coerced by their firm into making public fools of themselves in order to improve their team building skills. They sure didn't look too happy. Don't think I'd be too happy either if I'd studied hard, gone to law school / did accounting exams, etc, etc, was being entrusted with millions of pounds / important cases every day only to have some bozo of a boss think that I/we can only learn about how to work with others by wearing yellow/purple wigs and being sent out into the Bath drizzle to do a treasure hunt. Now, call me fussy but I guess that's pretty much why I will never, ever, ever, ever fit into that corporate mould (- pick your own meaning for mould!) because almost never is a persons unique individual way of learning and working respected. I know a brilliantly able guy who had to leave his wokplace because his (ex-)company had an open-door policy. He's the kind of guy who can outperform any of his colleagues, but needs a bit of peace and quiet to get his work done. He asked his boss if he could limit the time his door was 'open'. His boss said no. He left. Company loses. Boss takes the situation to be a confirmation of the adequacy of his team building skills - if you can't stand the heat.......
Not quite sure where all this is going, as usual, maybe I've just come to the rather obvious conclusion that the way forwards is to work for yourself and be your own boss.
Cheers for the welcome back DW. Appreciated.
Later.