ether you take a stand on something is entirely up to you. Only you can decide that. But how you challenge convention can lower or increase the chances of continuing to earn a pay check.
Sometimes, some situation really offends your values or sense of self. You feel the urge to speak up. But, if you can, spend a few minutes before you do so, deciding whether to go ahead.
As I mentioned in the last post, sometimes you need to confront an issue. It takes guts, but it also requires skill if you want to minimize the damage to your career.
What is Taking a Stand? In previous posts, I have discussed situations where taking a stand was an option. Whether it was trying to get a fair division of holidays (Intro), confronting a jerk boss (Power), refusing to maintain a lie (Lying), or trying to challenge groupthink (Groupthink), there can be times when you feel the need to speak up. Let’s do an example of what it might look like. What it looks like Amanda is your boss and you both work for an accounting firm. You are a Chartered Accountant as is she. Amanda comes into your office. Amanda: Ryan, I thought we discussed the Sanderson account. You: Yes, I know, but I just couldn’t find a way to not report the loss. Amanda: Oh, put it in a footnote, for god’s sake. You: I can’t do that! Amanda: Well do something. The client doesn’t want to highlight the loss. You: (a deep breath) Amanda, I know it’s important to please the client, but I just can’t do this. Amanda: Ryan, we’ve discussed your inflexibility before and I’ve had about all I can take. You: I’m sorry, Amanda, I’d like to accommodate the client, but I just can’t. Amanda:…
Surviving in a Family Business I want to reiterate that some family businesses are great places to work, even if you are not a family member. But some are not. A previous post gave an example of that. So You, as a non-family employee, can inadvertently be caught in these difficult dynamics. What can you do? It isn’t an easy situation but here are some Dos and Don’ts for surviving. The Don’ts for surviving Don’t try to mediate Being right in the middle of the fight, you might try to be helpful and offer a suggestion (“A sample run won’t take long and then you can decide”). Stifle the desire to ameliorate or fix what’s going on. First, it’s not your job to do so, and second, even if you were a mediation expert, it’s doubtful you’d be successful (because you would not be perceived as trustworthy by all parties). Don’t identify what’s really going on Avoid any comments like “Look, I can see that you and Martha are having trouble, so I’ll just come back—.” No, no, no. Bad family dynamics are often that way because no one’s willing to be honest about the problem. In fact,…
