Do you despise the bureaucracy of the workplace?

Post Reply New Topic

. . . And then HR starts telling me I'm arrogant because I don't fit in, which came as a shock and I didn't really know how to respond. The more bullied I got the more it was seen as an indication that I was elitist and a problem. When it dawned on me that I was being punished for being bullied I got out. . .

. . . and I get things done so quickly and accurately. . .

Absolutely!

I first got my job when the owner was a very eccentric, results orientated boss. He was all about results. We were told to do something and he'd expect it to be done. He'd go off on vacation for two weeks giving you no support or direction. He didn't give a crap how you got the work done, but if he came back two weeks later and it wasn't done you were fired.

I thrived under these conditions. I was free to work in my own ways at my own schedule. Other people in the company hated me and the owner because we didn't do things the way they though things ought to be done. A lot of people struggled, and I think even many aspies could have struggled to because there were no specific directions given. There were no job descriptions, anyone who said "that's not my job" was fired on the spot.

Then the company grew large. We set up multiple new large facilities in many states, and the bureaucracy set in. Then the owner died and the company was sold to a private investment group.

Now business is strictly business. Results are no longer a priority. How something is done is more important than the results. The facility I work for is looked down upon because we make too much profit, don't do things the proper way, and make the other facilities look bad.

I struggled for a long while as I learned the rules for how a "proper business" is run, when run by NT's There should be a sticky in the work fourm called "How to work for NT management." Some of the rules I have learned are as follows.
- Appearances are everything. Looking the part is more important than knowing the part.
- Optional company social events are always mandatory to attend. Failure to attend will have you branded as "not a team player."
- Meetings where mangers are present are always more important any actual work you have to do, no exceptions whatsoever.
- Appearing to be smart is more important than being smart.
- Using the right words is more important than understanding what those words mean.
- "Critical thinkers," aka people who point out when something is wrong, are looked down upon.
- Ass kissing will usually get you farther than any work you do.
- The boss must see you working. Results are irrelevant. The quiet guy in the back corner who gets the most work done will get the smallest raises and never be promoted.
- Those who lie, cheat, and steal will be promoted faster than those who don't, until they get caught.
- Most companies have a small group of people you could refer to as "untouchables." If an untouchable shows up to work drunk, crashes into a tree, commits sexual assault on another employee, and steals company property, say nothing! Anything said about an untouchable will get you fired.
- If management doesn't personally like you, anything anyone says about you will be held against you whether it's true or not.
- If something is "your choice," it is not. It means you must figure out what your boss wants and come to the same choice he's already thinking in his head. If you make a choice other than what he already knows he want's you to choose, your choice was wrong.
- Appearing to work hard for long hours is much more important than getting things done. Take for example:
- - - -Employee A: Is late to work, gets his work done in 2 hrs, and gets it done right the first time. Then slacks off in the lunchroom for a while and leaves work early.
- - - -Employee B: Starts work early., works 16 hours straight to do the same work, In the end it isn't done quite right.
- -In this example, Employee A will be labeled as lazy and a slacker, he will be a "problem employee." Employee B is a dedicated hard worker who's willing to go the extra mile and give it all for the company. Employee B will get raises and promotions. The fact that employee A cost the company less creating more profit, gets his work done faster and gets it done right the first time is irrelevant to NT management.

These may be slight exaggerations in some cases and you usually do have to get some work done in balance with the above. Also there are certain departments in business where these don't always apply such as engineering or computer programming. That is why these are places aspies thrive. But even in these departments when dealing with upper management or if you wish to move up within company they can become true again.