Morning After

In the book I am writing about the Judas Spirit and its role in betrayal in the office setting, I include a chapter that has a working title of "The Morning After." Essentially it looks at the ramifications that acts of betrayal have on all of those concerned. The research that I have done on this subject has shown me that the consequences of betrayal typically approximate the magnitude of the act. The greater the impact on the betrayed the greater the impact on all those around.

I liken this effect to the scene in the movie "Apocalypse Now," where Robert Duval's character says that he loves the smell of napalm in the morning. He goes on to say that, "it smells like victory." Anyone who lived through the Viet Nam War era knows a little about napalm, particularly the fact that its devastating effects are not limited to those who are targeted. So is the case with betrayal.

Last week, I had no further to look for an example of this than the Las Vegas Sun which ran a story about Mary Kay Peck the former city manager for Henderson being fired. While the comments that followed the article varied with some wanting to grant the woman sainthood and others wanting her burned at the stake, one thing was apparent, at least to those of us who have worked with her. Her demise was an example of one reaping what she had sown. On a minor scale, I had been the victim of her treachery so I have first hand experience of her m.o. Others who had been more recently victimized by her backstabbing spoke out and went to the people that could do something about it. Mary Kay paid the ultimate workplace price with a public beheading. What she had done to others came full circle back to her.

Having moved on from the City of Henderson many years ago, I had already forgiven her for what she had done to me. However, I took comfort knowing that God is a God of justice and what we do to others He will do to us. God in His mercy forgives and yet He also allows us to suffer the consequences of our sins. So is the case with Ms. Peck.

The lessons from observing this case emphasize the hurt and the widespread effects of those who practice betrayal. They also serve to drive my desires to finish my book so I can play a role in helping those hurt by betrayal learn to forgive and move on.

If you have a story about betrayal in the workplace that you would like to have considered for inclusion in the book, I would love to read it. Please email it to me at betrayalintheoffice@yahoo.com.

Don't Sell Yourself

Every time I hear one of the self-proclaimed human resources experts tell job seekers to sell themselves I cringe. Not to be crass, but the only people who truly sell themselves are prostitutes. In training that I provide to job applicants, I tell them that if they have to sell themselves, they are pushing the wrong product.

Nobody likes to be sold anything; they want to buy the things they need and want being sure to get the best values for their dollar. As wise consumers, we want to feel that we make good purchases. I have never heard anyone boast about how they fell for a snazzy sales pitch. Usually, such confessions are shared with a sense of embarrassment and a large dose of buyer’s remorse.

Similarly, as a purchaser of services from employees, I am tasked with making wise selections. The last thing I want to do is get fooled by someone passing themselves off to be something they are not. Hiring the wrong employee is expensive and draining to an employer’s resources leading to the worst type of buyer’s remorse.

Wise consumers do their research and make intelligent choices among the options they are provided. In the same manner, human resources professionals must make the best use of the most effective tools available to make intelligent choices among the applicants available. That includes maximizing the utility of the interview process.

Skillful interviewers are responsible for making positive matches between what applicants have to offer in terms of knowledge, skills, and abilities and those required in the job. Since good interviewers know the limitations of the interview process and that applicants are doing their best to represent themselves in the most positive light, they guard against being unduly influenced by glitzy pitches. A basic tenet of human resources work known among professionals is that any possible issues with a candidate identified in an interview will be magnified on the job.

Professionals want to hire hard working, well-qualified applicants who demonstrate a willingness to learn along with a willingness to accept direction and correction and get along with coworkers. These are the things that a job applicant needs to demonstrate in a job interview and they cannot be faked.

Products with good reputations are purchased for their quality. Weak products with poor reputations have to be pushed, or sold to unwary, unsuspecting, unprepared buyers. Good interviewers are not unwary, unsuspecting, or unprepared, so don’t try to sell them. Do a good job of assessing your qualifications and a realistic comparison of those qualifications to the job requirements and demonstrate that match in your application. Then when you get an interview, you don’t have to sell anything, you just continue to demonstrate how you match up with what the employer needs.