This Week in the World
Doubt - A Great Excuse for Inaction
I've been aware for many years that UK news reports treat global
warming as accepted common knowledge. Yet US news reports speak of
the global warming “controversy.” Two years ago I asked a table of
scientists at a conference what they thought about the situation,
and they unanimously agreed there is no controversy in the
scientific community. This week I learned that in the thousands of
scientific articles about global warming there is no dissention to
the idea that human activity contributes to global warming and
global warming is a serious problem. In contrast, more than half of
the articles in the media say it is uncertain. The misconception
that there is scientific disagreement about global warming has been
deliberately created, just like the tobacco industry deliberately
created doubt about the correlation between tobacco and lung cancer.
After all, when you’re certain, you have no excuse for inaction.
If you’re certain your manager is skimming the till or you’re
certain that someone’s remark was a put-down or you’re certain that
your work is as good as you think it is, etc..., you have a
responsibility to speak up. If you have some doubt you have an
excuse to stay silent. Doubt helps you maintain the status quo.
What are you pretending to doubt so you don’t have to take
action? What doubt are you hanging on to so you don’t have to take
action?
If you’re pretending to doubt, get over it. If you have
legitimate reasons to doubt, do the research to reach certainty. And
don’t wait for absolute certainty to speak up. After all, even the
standard to convict murderers is it must be beyond the shadow of a
reasonable doubt. It's not beyond the shadow of an unreasonable
doubt. Get off the fence and SpeakStrong.
Post a comment in our blog, here.
PowerPhrase
of the Week
What
Do I Say Or Do That Leads You to Believe...
When Larry made a side comment about not being accustomed to
working for a micromanager, his supervisor Stephanie’s impulse was
to either snap at him or ignore the remark. She did not regard
herself as a micromanager, and she wanted to tell him how wrong he
was or pretend he never said it. Instead she asked,
- What do I say or do that leads you to believe that I’m a
micromanager?
She listened as he explained the kinds of things he was
accustomed to doing on his own that he needed approval for. There
were a few tasks she needed to keep close tabs on and she explained
why. There were some others that she realized she could let go of.
By asking questions instead of reacting she was able to get clarity
and resolution.
If you develop the habit of asking questions that your Izzie
knee-jerk reaction is to dismiss, you will get the tools to take you
to clarity. Try it. You’ll like it.
comment
Poison
Phrase of the Week
You
Ruined My Sheets
Susan washed her new wool mattress pad in the washer and thought
she had al the fibers cleaned up. Apparently she didn’t, because her
roommate Jean told her about how it got all over her laundry. Jean
sounded calm and direct, and at first glance it sounded like she was
simply providing information to Susan. But Jean told Susan,
- You ruined my sheets.
The sheets weren’t ruined, they just needed to be rewashed and
run through the dryer for a while.
Why would Jean say the sheets were ruined when they weren’t? The
only reason I can think of is that she wanted to make Susan feel bad
about what she had done. When you make your case, let the facts
speak for themselves. If the facts don’t carry your point you
shouldn’t be making it.
comment
Ask
Meryl
Credit Denied
I am from India. This is my first job and I am feeling very
uncomfortable. My colleagues are very friendly sometimes they try to
be very close and take my help away to do the job and once the job
is done then they are never bothered to say Hi and they act
indifferently.
My colleague and I worked hard and are doing
great work but all the credits goes to my job partner. I have not
been recognized on the job. I am totally dissatisfied the way the
recognition is handled.
Can you please help me or advice what
needs to be done. I am really psst... with the way these people
behave with me. When the work needs to be done they ask my help and
all the credit goes to someone else.
Meryl Responds
It’s an unfortunate fact of life that most people are more aware
of their own interests and inputs than that of others, and it’s your
job to make your work visible.
Keep your to-do list on a white board where everyone can see it.
Brag a bit when you accomplish something. For example, say, “I’m
excited that I figured out how to solve the x,y,z problem.” Document
your input and give it to your supervisor, explaining that you want
him/her to have the information to prepare for your performance
review.
Ask your partner to help you be more visible. Say,
- I think we make a great team, but it seems to me that you’re
much better at getting recognition for your work than I am. I’d
like to know how you do it, because I don’t feel like I get my
fair share of credit. Can you give me some tips?
Say something similar to your boss. Say,
- I think I’m much better at (the true nature of your work) than
I am at getting recognition. Can you help me figure out how to
make my input more visible?
When people ask for help, ask for recognition in return. Say,
- I’d love to help. Would you be willing to put a plug in for me
with the boss and let him/her know how helpful I was?
Act as your own advocate while still working as a team.
It’s a long process to change how you behave and how others
respond to you. But it’s worth it.
Check my newsletter and my blogs. I plan to publish your
question, and my subscribers are great in offering their input.
comments
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