I don’t know about you, but I always thought modesty is a virtue. Not anymore! While it obviously has its place, the workplace, I have found, is scarcely that place. Here, what is on the outside matters as much, possibly more, than what is inside.
Seeing as good old Wazua is not an agony uncle type of forum, I’ll keep the details of my tribulations to a minimum. The object of my post is to share what I consider might be useful information to those yet to face a similar situation. They would do well to avoid it.
After slaving day and night (and I mean that literally), for a project at work, we’re finally on the home stretch, a year and a half down the line. It’s been a success, no doubt, and a glorious moment for the whole team. However, as is often the paradox in life, those who worked hardest in terms of real output also happen to be the ones who wrote the fewest emails and hustled the least to take credit for their work. And I am talking peers here, not team leaders and members.
While the “workers” buried themselves in productive activity, the “vultures” sat by waiting for every milestone they (the “workers”) neglected to take credit for and pounced on it with much ado. It was easy, really. Send out emails to the bosses announcing the achievement of milestone xyz by “the team” and call later, just to make sure.
In ignorance, we, the “workers”, assumed no harm or danger, forgetting it was only the vultures’ names that made it to the boss’s inbox. Now the chickens have come home to roost. It’s payback time, promotions, accolades and all. It is an easy guess whose chest is heavy with medals. The “vultures’”, of course.
Wouldn’t feel bad at all if the vultures had contributed much real work. But they didn’t. In trying to understand this contradiction, I stumbled upon what I thought was a helpful article on line. Here’s the
link. I’ve only worked for a few years now. I know there are people here on Wazua of less, equal or more experience. Your thoughts please…