Bitching, Gossip and Politicking

Whilst working in India, I notice that in several semi-urban Companies/Organizations, a large percentage of time is spent in gossip, politicking and bitching (blaming a third person who is not present) in a conversation.

This habit of gossip and politicking stems from the fact that we are a native populace who are over a millennium old at the very least - even the migrants among us. We have enjoyed large reserves of food, and long periods of time to kill - and during this time, as part of a social structuring exercise much time has been spent in gossip and politicking as means of reworking social structure. Early evidence of such politicking is evident in historic annals of the Nanda Dynasty (which destroyed the Gana Sanghs of the Gangetic Plain and gained strong control) and had many achievements but eventually fell to a more actionable successor - the Mauryas led by a strategic expert 'Kautilya'.

Today, Companies & Organizations where people get too comfortable because they are blindly trusted by their superiors or management end up having a lot of politicking and gossip. If a leader does not see this and leaves it unattended, providing time and opportunity for politicking to continue, this negative culture erodes the entire organization and effectually decreases or neutralizes productivity. Slowly, the Company (or Organization) marches towards certain extinction until a point where even a Turnaround Leader (like a Lee Iaccoca) can no longer make amends. This culture usually stems from people who earn strong trust, but continue to feel insecure despite that deep trust. The worst type of leader in an organization is the 'yes-man' who never tells facts and contradicts management/investor/stakeholder's requests. They always say 'yes' when it is the top-boss/investor asking for some result and then try, but eventually fail when it is physically impossible. Slowly the rot of politicking erodes the organization like the termites of Saruman (frm: LOTR) and leaves everyone's morale in a low, also spreading mass stress usually combined with indifference and depression.

If you are inside a company where your boss pretends that factual reality is wrong and relies on perspectives of some individual on whom she has invested all her trust, it is a sign that you ought to leave. This is the true manifestation of 'Maya' (as Indian Philosophy calls gnosticism.) There is little to be done after the decision-maker is swayed by the virtuosity created by her trustworthy lieutenant. The one thing you can do is to leave the organization without scruple, for the repairing the damage is no longer in your hand. Unless you can bring your boss back to reality and see beyond the veil created by the trustworthy lieutenant who is creating the virtual realm and simultaneously harming the organization, there is not much to do; except if you believe in revolt. Switch to an company or organization where people spend much less time blaming, in gossip, in politics and more time producing and attending to their customers.

If you are the one feeling insecure and creating the virtual world, stop and think. Eventually your hunger for control (which is the same as the hunger for power) and your assumptions (which were never based on fact) are about to bring the ship down. If you do not have true affection and concern for society and are feigning it, then you are about to see truth reflect on you - for it always triumphs, and "truth's triumph" doesn't mean that the resultant is sweet. The bitterness might leave an organization and its people in shambles. Provoking people and making them talk about a third person to feed your own egotist self is the best way to tear down morale and trust below you. Finally no one will respect you nor trust you - for this nasha (or madness) will be your own undoing of yourself - for you will find that true happiness will elude you and leave you in perpetual pain, (even if you were a sadomasochist.) 

You need help first, you need to understand that nature does not take kindly to those who eat into organizations into which they are most trusted by their bosses. Nature is strong and when it reflects on you - no human can save you, for you will be destroyed, not by people. The longer you continue, the stronger will be nature's backlash. The organization will turn unprofitable, revenue will be difficult, customers will be slim, employees will have no morale, no attachment - they will create smaller cycles of the same evil you do to others. 

Eventually all will fall, with no one to protect you, save Nature itself and the Omnipotent Creator. Save yourself and prevent it. Remember that this world changes almost instantly and only all the good you have done or have tried to do will be with you when you find dire straits - you can get back and undo the damage you have knowingly or unknowingly unleashed. Blame someone else when you have all the authority, time shall wear you down - for you shall continually find hell on earth and be accustomed to repeat your vices. Life is short to be wasted feeling hell.

When you look for a new job, check the employees about 'blame-games', 'finger-pointing', 'gossips', how they spend free time, actual profit/loss statements, achievements per unit time in the recent past and then invest your time in that company. 

Do not, in desperation join an environment that robs you of your sense of fulfillment and happiness because of a politicking marauder and a hyper-trusting top-boss. Real organizations will not work in binary/extremes. They will create balance and an environment for people to shine, not whine. Find this for it exists in the subcontinent, do not spend your career in a pained place where everyone is suffering and passing only the suffering on to employees and customers alike. Stay alert and try not to hurt anyone no matter what.

The 'Yes-man' will not exist in an organization where the Top-Boss listens and senses the environment with empathy and logic, thereby removing them and placing realistic achievers who achieve, yet never say 'yes' to every request. This is the best environment, where you will find mentors, not bitching/gossip/politicking - these environments exist for India is soaked in deep wisdom of its past. Finding them is also easy, it merely requires diligence.

Find them and escape those vices that can destroy you. Life is what we experience through time, and it is ill-news to waste it feeling pain. Life is to be relished, enjoyed every moment. Life is not a wave of joy and sorrow, it is ultimately what we feel and paradise is on earth, it is our response to the environment; and it is our choice to choose or create this environment where we find paradise and no pain. Mukthi and Nirvana is achieved on earth, for our great past has taught us much. Mere dressing-up and make-up will never have true results. Mere talking will never help for your identity is derived from what you do; "you are what you do."

The Carrot and the Stick

Before a "Grand Inauguration" of a new facility, at least my teammates were expecting their performance Bonus. Processing for the same and scoring was already done and the figures had already been presented on paper to the team. But like all efficient organizations and with the assistance of an absolutely insensitive clod of a reporting head (who ain't bothered coz he's got no financial deficit right now) this wasn't credited.

That meant a lot of people were unhappy. I had a bitter taste too after having detailed all the necessary information, nothing was working out.

I am probably very impatient in many ways. This of course helps me in more ways than it can harm me as I get things done on the double.

I am not very happy either at the end. I might end up not visiting the Grand Inauguration even if I could, just for saving a few bucks on transport (fuel) and spending some quality time playing around with the linux kernel.

There were other precipitating factors like the inability to recruit new people because the company's offer of salary is too disagreeable to anyone whom we select. Market correction of the salary is a long way down the line. I am sure more people will quit before they realize. The point is the management think they have the Carrot and the Stick. It looks to me like the Stick is with the people who actually create it. If you don't invest you get nothing out of people or bricks. The Truth being, today's world does call people "Human Resources" and are more interested in "Capital Assets" and "Human Resources" like other resources are a liability.

(Yeah these are the words of a disgruntled employee in part.) That doesn't change what's what at the end. You give everything you have when you want to get more than what you have; that's the personal loyalty sense of today. Otherwise it has a negative effect that you stop giving everything you can give, that makes you dull. You'd rather switch and do more rather than stay back unhappy and do less. That seems to be a valid argument to me.

The unfortunate part is, no matter where you go, you're still a brick. There are those who are Dogs in the manger (managers) who'd rather never give up for a horse.
There's just the watermark of what you get that gets adjusted. When you reach it, you get unhappy all over again and switch. So where do you stop this all? One way, is to start on your own with your dreams and put yourself and everything you have at risk to get much more than what anyone else can offer. The other way is to learn to change the place you're already in to think differently. The former being easier (although too risky), the latter being much more difficult (although it looks less risky.)

Fighting Murphy's Law

Today was, in retrospect, a fine day indeed. Quite a few things I'd planned at work had started to go wrong. I had to go and reverse a decision, thanks to a new input on a microprocessor I was working on. Then there was buggy software that almost went along with a product to the field.

The strange thing is, we managed to stop all of this just at the eleventh hour. While I would say this ain't good management, it is strange that (at least) some of these things showed up before we got products on the field. I was running around quite a bit all through morning understanding before everyone else did, what was at stake. Everyone thought I had a panic reaction and finally after addressing the situation, people were quite happy about the way I'd rushed through it.

Afternoon was much more relaxed. I was supposed to meet somebody or rather the other way around by evening. Unfortunately the person was attending TI's Developer Conference and I chose to leave a little earlier than my published 1830hrs.

There has also been speculation on the dates on which my Company is actually shifting location of operations. That's adding one more uncertain variable specifically a disproportional increase in commutation cost and time. The sooner it comes, the sooner I would be forced to consider addressing it as a risk that I'd rather not take. Perhaps, this got me a bit worried in the morning, but nothing actually got to me to snap my cool.

The one thing I could learn today was, "So long as you react quick enough you can prevent things from going wrong later." Although masked by urgency, addressing problems quickly can potentially prevent a catastrophe. The other rule was of course to take responsibility for what you've done earlier. That makes it easier no matter how everyone reacts.

The Party, Hosts and Guests

My company is having a new building open to the employees. Its a bit further out of B'lore which means it adds hours to your commuting time. We have an inauguration party and we are the hosts. The Admin team decided to inform all of us who work at what's called Company R&D unit/BLR just during the week on which the "Grand Party" is scheduled. The cranky part was they informed the guests coming from various units of my Company around India and nearby a month earlier (which meant we had the info in our Gossip networks already.)

Finally, after almost screaming :Hell: they sent out an invitation for family (spouse and kids). Then there's a mail in "Red", acidic as it might look, saying "Note: Friends, Relatives and Parents Not Allowed." The chap who manages the Admin department, probably bad at communication didn't really catch the impact. Finally a good number of folks sent e-mails and phone calls to the Corporate HR HQ quoting this very line which in Indian cultural terms meant disrespect to Parents. The worst part was this guy actually told folk including me that it was company policy not to allow Parents to parties. That kind of cut the attendance to less than 30% of the local guys'n gals who'll actually be moving to the new facility.

Then the Admin chap who sent the original message instructs his junior to send another mail saying families and parents allowed. That line sounds hilarious as they haven't really given an engineering specification on who's family/parents are allowed. I guess we're in for a good flame war in Office.

This is just one example of how a single person messing up communication can spoil the reputation of an entire department or worse still the whole damn company. I find that devious and deceptive individuals or plainly those who simply can't write a line right, can be a massive liability even if they're hired to save $$$ by efficient "cost-cutting."

I want to make a request for pets tomorrow and see how that goes. On second thought, I'd probably keep my pet safe at home.