Hey,That,was,idea,...,Corporat business, insurance Hey! That was my idea!... Corporate Games for a Rainy Day

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People occasionally come to me and ask about situations with their jobs orwithin their companies. The primary question I hear is "What do I doif...?" Usually, they got caught up in a turf war or game and have no ideawhat to do next. Most of my answers come out sounding like a militarybattle plan. However, the type of information I provide is a mutated formof an MBA course taught in many closed-door, corporate management classes.This series of articles, called "Corporate Games for a Rainy Day," is anidea that's been shoved in the corner of my brain for quite a while. Theinformation consists of knowledge from corporate classes as well aspractical experience in a couple of corporations for which I worked. I'm notgoing to pass ALL of my games on to you in these articles; however, I amassembling an e-book that will provide you with a complete list of games andhow to deal with each. I'm sure that you'll either enjoy the reading orsend nasty notes because I'm giving away secrets to your employees.Whichever you choose, at least I know that you've read it!--- My Corporate America ---I've worked in several HUGE corporations and start-ups as gopher, grunt,engineer, and manager. The one thing I've found during this journey isthat---all companies are the same. You laugh? It's true!* Corporate Organization SimplifiedThe company itself has one primary objective---to make money. It doesn'tmatter how they go about making money, whether it be a product or a service,the result is the same. Make a profit!Within a company, departments are formed to support the direction of theoverall organization. Within each department, you have individuals wholead, others who follow, and a few who simply get in the way. Each type ofindividual is attracted to a group with which they feel comfortable or thatthey can use to get ahead. This is where the problem begins!Of course, it is good that people want to get ahead. They want to provetheir worth, move into the next higher group, and appear to be contributingto the bottom line of the company. But, for one person to get ahead,someone else has to fall behind. It is in the attempt to get ahead thatpolitics rears its ugly head and the games and turf wars begin.* Politics DefinedIn reality, politics is the self-governing of the free. It is a way thatpeople choose their own destiny and govern themselves to an ultimate pointor destination in their life. When applied to corporations, politicsrepresents an illicit method of getting things done; however, it is animportant element of corporate behavior that can affect your career.To properly navigate through the morass of political tangles within acorporation, you must have the political know-how to open the doors to theelite groups of the company. The problem is that the road to attaining suchknow-how is kept vague by many of those who have successfully traveledthrough those doors.Whether the company is large, medium, or small, there are the same peoplewith the same ideas and the same approaches to the same situations. Theadvantage is that, once you learn how the general games and turf battleswork, you can feel at home regardless of the company!--- Have any good ideas lately? ---One of the more frustrating and least noticeable games is the "Steal theIdea and Wait Six Months" game. It is a game in which you present an ideathat is turned down by your boss. In about six months, your idea comes backto live in the body of another individual.* The SetupYou have developed an idea that can provide support for or creates asolution for some element of your company. You've thought about it,researched it, and decided that you should be proactive and approach yourboss with an idea.You put together a presentation and setup a meeting with your boss. Hetells you, however, that it will be a private meeting. You go all out andtell him everything.Once you're finished with your end of the presentation, he sits quietly fora moment. You continue chattering to fill in the blanks. Once he's hadtime to consider the idea, he essentially smashes it to pieces. You leavehis office, dejected, and let the idea go.* The AssaultSix months later, you're sitting in a meeting held by your boss. He carrieson for a while and then presents this mutated version of your original idea.At least it sounds like your idea, only it's less mature than when youpresented it. It's like he changed it and left out some key elements thatyou had already presented. Suddenly, your boss hands the project to one ofyour peers and tells her to make it work.Over the weeks or months that follow, the idea takes shape, with input andassistance from your boss. He provides the intricate details to your peerthat he had originally left out of "his" presentation. Eventually, yourpeer presents your idea in a meeting in the same way you presented it toyour boss in the first place.--- Solutions ---Of course, this is frustrating, yet it happens time and time again to manypeople in corporations. The best way to handle such a situation is toaccept it---the first time. But, when the second time comes around, youshould be prepared to handle yourself professionally.Once you experience this situation the first time, your boss will probably,privately, pat you on the back and give some type of excuse as to why hehanded your idea off to another person. You will then be given a differentproject to block your time so that he will look as though he had "biggerplans for you." At this point, you have five choices:- quit,- become a quiet worker-bee,- report it to his manager,- realize that you are now in a good brown-nosing position, or- you can reverse the game.* QuittingWhen you first encounter such a game, it can be quite frustrating. Nomatter how much you despise what has happened, don't quit! This is a commongame and it is not a personal attack. This is merely a situation that youallowed to become out of your control. Learn how this game works as youwill encounter it again in later job opportunities.* The Quiet TypeAs for becoming a quiet worker in your position, it's too late. Your bossknows that you have good ideas in your head and he will want more. If youbutton-up and never devise ideas again, your chances of a raise willdiminish as will your longevity in that company. You will probably behustled into the worst possible projects simply because you won't playanymore.* Report to His BossThis approach is never good under these circumstances. Again, the issue isnot a personal attack. It is merely a chance your boss saw to gain a fewpoints with his boss. Let it ride and don't go above his head for thissituation as you will only cause problems for yourself. Besides, learn fromit and figure out how you can gain a few points with your boss in thissituation.* Brown-NosingAs for the brown-nosing position, you are now in a good position to makeyour way into the boss' good graces. Feed him some more good ideas, makehim look good, go for the gusto. You now have a chance to ride the wave inright behind your boss. However, do you know which wave your boss isactually riding?One thing you have to realize is that your boss will not be in that positionforever. He could get promoted or laid off and even quit, leaving you tofend for yourself. If you decide to become a brown-noser, you will end uplooking like an idea-less fool. Remember, you quietly gave all of yourideas to him in exchange for grace.* Reversing the GameI've always seen reversing the game as a way of gaining a little bit ofcontrol over this type of situation. You must always be professional, butprofessional retaliation can be more ruthless than all out physical battle.You need to plan any type of retaliation so that it does not come over asbeing personal and so that you come out ahead.The best reversal for this game is to come up with your next idea, plan itout, and generate a solid, detailed, hardcopy report. Once it is complete,place the hardcopy of the plan in your desk drawer. Now, prepare asecondary "verbal" presentation of your plan, but leave out a fewnon-trivial, yet not-so-obvious, pieces of the puzzle. Present thisverbal-only plan to your boss.When your boss holds his meeting and hands your idea off to one of yourpeers, have an impromptu meeting with that peer. Tell her how lucky she isto work on the project and give her your original hardcopy. Tell her thatyou were already considering a "very general rough" of the idea and would behappy to consult if she needs any assistance.--- What's next? ---A key to this game is privacy. If your boss initially tells you that hewants to discuss your idea in private, then you should get the idea thatyou're in trouble.I have no idea why six months is usually the time that passes before theassault occurs, but that's the standard turn around time for theresurrection of ideas. It appears that it has something to do with the hopethat everyone involved will forget about the original idea and move on toother projects.Also, an important side to this game, and others, is that of the "quiettime" that ensues when you've finished speaking. This quiet time is createdto force you to continue your chattering to divulge other information thatyou would probably have never told your boss in the first place. In thissituation, your best bet is to sit quietly as well.Reversing the game is a professional way of maintaining your dignity,keeping your place in the company as an intelligent individual, and allowingyour boss to build up some of his own personal glory. One important thingto realize is that you want to oscillate between brown-nosing and reversal.If you reverse too often, your boss will learn the pattern and he won'ttrust you. You have to wait for at least two assaults before you reversethe first time so that he does learn to trust you. Then, brown-nose for atime or two before you reverse the game again.The point is not to reverse too often so as not to ruin your relationshipwith your boss. But, you don't want to be seen as an idea-less fool thatkisses up to the boss to keep your job. Article Tags: Corporate Games, Good Ideas, First Time