On Mon, 27 May 1996 10:31 Jack Hirschfield wrote -
> Michael McMaster declares:
> >
> >Experience tells me that people can't be counted on "to do the right
> >thing because it is the right thing". But then, I think that's
> >because my "right thing" and your "right thing" and their "right
> >thing" are all different.
>
> This "because" denies the existence of evil in the world. My experience
> tells me something else as well, namely that many people can't be "counted
> on to do the right thing" because they think people who do the right thing
> are stupid, or enslaved.
>
> Michael continues:
>
> >People can be counted on to do what makes sense to them. And what
> >makes sense to them will have a great deal to do with the systems
> >they find themselves in.
>
> Both Michael and John Woods seem to me to be in denial regarding large
> numbers of people who believe they understand the systems they find
> themselves in, have determined them to be senseless, and feel powerless
> (or are unwilling for other reasons) to change the nonsensical world they
> live in.
IMHO, all people do what they believe to be the "right" thing to do
in light of the facts they have at the time. If the boss is
threatening and not receptive to change or something different, most
people will act to protect their livelihood. To somehow call this
wrong or not the right thing to do is to deny the way our Creator
made us and to contend that people should not operate as people. How
far any person is willing to go in jeopardizing the security of their
own family varies and is certainly a very personal decision.
The most important aspect of this human condition is that the boss
gets to decide how employees will act, what they do. If the boss acts
a certain way, employees will not be fearsome of their jobs and will
creatively commit themselves to do their best against the highest
standards of performance available, against all high value standards.
This includes being the best as concerns LO. Similarly, the boss can
act in a different way and cause employees to be dishonest, play
their cards close to their vest, not perform up to normal value
standards and not be good for LO.
So it is up to the boss to decide which actions he/she will use
because the response of employees has been preordained. If you are
interested in knowing what these actions are, email me separately.
Regards, Joan
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Joan Pomo The Finest Tools for Managing People
Simonton Associates Based on the book
jpomo@gate.net "How to Unleash the Power of People"
--"jpomo@gate.net" <jpomo@gate.net>
Learning-org -- An Internet Dialog on Learning Organizations For info: <rkarash@karash.com> -or- <http://world.std.com/~lo/>