Sometimes I struggle, now that I’ve left the dark side (forever), to remember that the old rules don’t apply anymore. When things are going well, it’s easy, but there are occasions when the scars from my decade of toiling away in dysfunctional work environments makes it hard. Times like yesterday and today.
What’s weird about yesterday and today is the context. The thing that triggered my dark-side-reflex was not significant. It was a minor misunderstanding. But, somehow, it conjured up images of a former boss, a person I hated, admired, and often colluded with to get things done as a tool of the evil empire. My ability to do the things that make an organization healthy started to evaporate. Here’s what started to get hard:
When we detect ourselves behaving in unhealthy ways emotionally, the secret to getting out of it is simple: Do something healthy about it. So I admitted to those involved (which includes my boss) that I was starting to get cranky about the issue and that, even though it wasn’t exactly right, I might have some difficulty being rational about it.
What would your organization do in this situation? Your boss? Your co-workers?
Mine smiled at me and told me to relax. It was all I needed – a nice reminder that I was free from the Dark Side. The context re-focused, the old boss vibes were gone, and everything became easy again. I could be critical of my own work again, and it felt nice.
It takes extraordinary people to create a healthy work environment. I think I’m the luckiest computer geek alive.
Stumble it!
2 responses so far ↓
1 Allen // Jan 3, 2010 at 7:16 pm
Isn't this to some degree just the difference between a good boss and a bad boss which could occur at any location? I have experienced my worst bosses at small companies and some of my best at large companies. I don't think it is a function of the size of the company, just the size of the ego and their amount of trust in their fellow man.
To my observation this carries down the organization. A good Senior VP with integrity creates a welcome environment. But an SVP with greed and self interest creates misery that travels down hill quickly.
I still agree with your basic premise that a software company better appreciates its software developers, instead of viewing them as a necessary evil.
2 davidray // Jan 4, 2010 at 2:04 am
Perhaps. I tend to believe it's more of a difference between an overall healthy organization and an unhealthy one. An unhealthy one will take a good boss and ruin him. A healthy one will purge bad boss's and make good boss's better.
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