Sunday, May 30, 2010

Credibility

I watched in awe as a teenager, religiously making sure that no one takes control of the TV remote when the Tour De France was being broadcast on the television. I used to get goose bumps witnessing Lance Armstrong attack - a rare phenomenon. Simply put – Lance was my idol, my hero and heroes do not need credibility.

On May 20 2010, Floyd Landis dropped a bombshell. I am not concerned about his admission of doping. What shocked me was his accusation against “My Hero – Lance Armstrong”.

It is an open truth that Cycling and Doping are synonymous. Yet once in a blue moon, someone like Lance Armstrong comes along and rewrites the script. He doesn’t cheat; he is a cancer survivior and has won the Tour De France a record number of times.

When Lance responded to the allegations leveled by Landis, he did so by invoking ‘credibility’. Expressing doubt over Landis’s credibility might have been a valid and legal point. But that got me thinking…

“Since when do Heroes need Credibility”?

I am no longer interested in Cycling. Lance Armstrong is no longer a hero to me. I don’t think there would be anyone who would be exalted to that status anymore – I have no need for ‘Heroes’. Whether the allegation sticks or not; it doesn’t matter anymore.

Credibility is not a virtue of a Hero. They don’t need it.

Tuesday, May 25, 2010

Between the rungs of a Corporate Ladder

It is all hunky-dory, when one remains neutral and ignorant. I realized today, to my horror that it is an in-inescapable black hole into which one gets sucked into. Yeah. I am talking about the murky underworld of office politics. I have heard horror stories from my friends about how bitchy, cut-throat and sometimes downright pathetic, the office environment becomes; when one is entangled in the vicious web.

Seniors who are inferior in both talent and skills, resort to sabotaging the work of juniors (it is nothing but insecurity and lack of skill up-gradation that would otherwise put them on par with the juniors), and then lick the boss’s ass to secure their position. The juniors cannot complain because the boss turns a blind eye, leaving them with very few choices:

  • Put up with it and wage a lone battle. Bide your time, establish yourself and then show everyone who’s the boss (this rarely happens).
  • Start licking their holy asses.
  • Quit.

Why does the company tolerate such inferior talented seniors? I can think of two reasons:

  • Experience is on their side and the company cannot afford to lose seniors. Hence the company overlooks the lacunae that might be in them.
  • They have been licking the boss’s ass so much that the boss has gotten used to it and cannot live without them. Hence, the boss uses his/her all-mighty powers to protect the undeserving ass lickers.

There are some ‘museum pieces’ (read senior management level employees) that ought to be pickled, bottled and shoved up a donkey’s rear (poor donkey: it will probably die of constipation). They keep flipping (faster than a chameleon can change its color) according to the situation, deny what they said few minutes ago, come up with absurd reasons and excuses for their actions, total control freaks (need to consult with them for everything) and most importantly black tongued hypocrites. I don’t believe in God, but if one doesn’t pucker up to such pieces of shit then God help us. There is every possibility of being fired for some absurd reason, re-instating to everyone that they are indeed ‘the shit that matters’.

In the midst of all this, the company makes all the right noises about being just, transparent, fair and so on… If the company does not have the balls to take on the leeches that have dug in deep, the least they can do is job security to those who are unfairly targeted, as a result of office politics.

When the soul of a company is being raped by such vested, uncouth employees, undermining its foundations; where is the joy and satisfaction in working for such a company?