All about the face time
May 16, 2008
There’s a day I was going to be out on sick leave. I’d finally managed to coordinate three important appointments in a single day because dealing with piecemeal appointments is aggravating and being out of the office for personal business has become taboo due to disintegrating relationships. What happens? Naturally, BB wants his birthday celebration scheduled the very same day.
Of course.
He’s completely unaware of my appointments, as is his wont, but there’s no profit in pointing that out.
In the spirit of learning how to think about all the possible political ramifications of this conflict, I’m weighing the pros and cons of rescheduling all my appointments or refusing to accommodate BB’s whims.
Stand my ground because:
I don’t have to struggle to coordinate three departments’ schedules.
I win personally. Professionally, no win. They don’t care if I have to go through a lot of trouble or not.
I don’t look like a pushover.
I win personally. Professionally, possibly negative. They want me to be cooperative with them. I can stand my ground with other people, just not them.
My presence isn’t that important.
It’s not, but I don’t gain anything by proving it. However, my absence may be remarked upon and I would have no control over the commentary that might ensue.
Change the appointments because:
As above, it’s not my presence that’s as important as my absence would be.
Yes, other colleagues have been absent for other staff members’ birthdays, but this is the Big Boss. It’s different.
It’s not impossible and doesn’t cost me financially to reschedule.
Unless it was a prohibitively expensive trip or appointment, the trade-off would be an intangible benefit to a tangible cost.
LB is all about sacrifice.
And is demonstrably bitter about the appointments of various kinds and trips that he’s chosen to give up. Obviously, they were all choices on his part, but he’s definitely bitter about it, so it doesn’t matter that it was his choice to do so. As long as it looks like sacrifice to him …..
Ultimately, it seems that I have nothing to gain, but potentially could lose a chance to rebuild frayed relationships if I choose to retain my current appointments instead of taking the time to reschedule for a later date. Even if the effort turns out to be futile, ie: they change the date of the celebration, the effort to accommodate them was made. While it could be construed as overly accommodating, or even syncophantic behavior which I’m not noted for, it’s also a concession. And if I concede this battle, knowing what and why I’m conceding, I’ll be more prepared for other battles that may be more important to fight. (ie: Con. I’m not giving that up.)
Rusty though they are, I feel like I’m working out my political chops a bit.
Ish. Your workplace is starting to sound like a bad junior high clique.
I don’t think I’d reschedule, even for the big boss shindig–prior plans always trump for me. LB *allowed* work to take over his life; he didn’t HAVE to give up anything for it, but s/he did. It’s SO WRONG for LB to expect others to make the same unnecessary sacrifices.
After I realized my work was taking extreme advantage of my willingness to please, I stopped all unnecessary compromises, and started to ask for things for ME. It really didn’t affect my coworkers or workplace too much, and in my last review I was rated as high a score as I can get–higher than ever before. Also, I’m happier, taking classes on their dime and working part-time…it doesn’t sound like that would work there, though.
If you are going to take a sick day for it, just phone in and say your ill on the day. What’s the problem with that? Nobody can help being ill. From what you write, I doubt you do that very often.
~sense~ Junior high, or high school? š
Things have, since I’ve been too stressed to pay attn to the political climate, gotten exponentially worse due to internal and external factors. If I want to make it through the next several months while I gather my resources and prepare for a big change, I have to make calculated choices that appear to be sacrifices for them. It’s not healthy to truly emulate LB but his expectation is that I must in order to “prove” myself, again. *Just have to make it through the next several months.*
~moom~ It’s never that simple at my workplace. First, they know I’d planned to use sick day for dr appts. Second, even if I were truly ill, they expect me to come to work anyway. They SAY they don’t want us to come to work sick, but no one is allowed to send anyone home sick. Ie: “We come to work, sick or not, but it’s your choice to come in if you’re sick or not.” Basically, they say they care but don’t mean it. And on top of that, if you do call in sick and you’re not currently in favor, they assume you’re lying and disparage you in your absence.
I don’t call in sick, even when sick, simply because of that attitude. Unless I’m dying, they’re going to expect the work to get done, or there will be talk about why the work didn’t get done.