There’s no ‘I’ in ‘Team’
Days off, thank goodness for that. I’ve just about had a bellyful, not of dealing with the general dyslexic but two particular characters on our squad. As I’ve probably explained before (and if I haven’t – I apologise for the omission), we’re pretty much of a mix of people with quite distinct and strong characters. This does not sit well with one of our supervisors and one of the Team leaders. They regurgitate this godawful bullshit about how we all have to be a ‘team’, and anyone who doesn’t spend his / her whole life kissing their particular ass is looked down upon. These people take it amiss that I do not wish to spend my every waking minute in their company at their beck and call. They are so insecure they have to extend their status beyond the workplace.
Excuse me; when I finish work for the day or night I want to go home and let it all go, chat to Mrs Sticker, walk my dog, have a relaxing drink and write a little. Not spend my time with duplicitous people I am rapidly coming to loathe and despise for their two faced dealings.
One of the reasons I put up with all the foolishness we get on the streets is the personal space you get. Booking errant motorists for not paying attention is a necessary evil. Apart from lunch and end of shift, you don’t see your co – workers, only hear them over the radio. You get those precious moments to look up from the daily unpleasantness to smell the blossom, look at the clouds and free your consciousness a little between checking and booking vehicular infractions of the parking regulations.
From my perspective, there’s something distinctly sad about someone whose whole life revolves around what they do for a living. In fact there’s something deeply disturbing about the whole existential side of things. Example; when asked ‘what are you?’ most people use the shorthand explanation of saying ‘I’m an accountant’, ‘I’m a mother’, ‘I’m a Policeman’ or whatever. I try not to ask that question because the answer you get always comes across as a fob off. It’s also defensive because what this response tells you is the person really thinks ‘Don’t make me think about it’. This is their personal comfort zone, which you intrude upon at your peril.
So why do you get this corporatist style nonsense where an individual, who doing a job correctly, doesn’t really want to socialise with the people he works with. I have a life outside work thank you. Not the one I would like, but one I am working to improve, day by day. So long as I do no harm to others it is none of anyone’s damn business. I have nothing to feel guilty about, and a certain few things I take personal pride in. My personal life is my own – go away.
A person needs space between what they are and what they do to live a full and meaningful life. Unless you are working for yourself, no company in the world (So long as you are not deliberately sabotaging their activities) can dictate how you think and feel outside the work environment. No one could pay me enough for that sort of loyalty. So how come there is this body of thought? It’s such a one sided deal and the rule makers are usually sad lonely people who need to go out and get proper lives. Or is that too frightening for the poor babies?
My father summed his view of this up for me most succinctly. “There may be no ‘I’ in team, but there’s far too bloody much ‘Me – me – me’”.
Excuse me; when I finish work for the day or night I want to go home and let it all go, chat to Mrs Sticker, walk my dog, have a relaxing drink and write a little. Not spend my time with duplicitous people I am rapidly coming to loathe and despise for their two faced dealings.
One of the reasons I put up with all the foolishness we get on the streets is the personal space you get. Booking errant motorists for not paying attention is a necessary evil. Apart from lunch and end of shift, you don’t see your co – workers, only hear them over the radio. You get those precious moments to look up from the daily unpleasantness to smell the blossom, look at the clouds and free your consciousness a little between checking and booking vehicular infractions of the parking regulations.
From my perspective, there’s something distinctly sad about someone whose whole life revolves around what they do for a living. In fact there’s something deeply disturbing about the whole existential side of things. Example; when asked ‘what are you?’ most people use the shorthand explanation of saying ‘I’m an accountant’, ‘I’m a mother’, ‘I’m a Policeman’ or whatever. I try not to ask that question because the answer you get always comes across as a fob off. It’s also defensive because what this response tells you is the person really thinks ‘Don’t make me think about it’. This is their personal comfort zone, which you intrude upon at your peril.
So why do you get this corporatist style nonsense where an individual, who doing a job correctly, doesn’t really want to socialise with the people he works with. I have a life outside work thank you. Not the one I would like, but one I am working to improve, day by day. So long as I do no harm to others it is none of anyone’s damn business. I have nothing to feel guilty about, and a certain few things I take personal pride in. My personal life is my own – go away.
A person needs space between what they are and what they do to live a full and meaningful life. Unless you are working for yourself, no company in the world (So long as you are not deliberately sabotaging their activities) can dictate how you think and feel outside the work environment. No one could pay me enough for that sort of loyalty. So how come there is this body of thought? It’s such a one sided deal and the rule makers are usually sad lonely people who need to go out and get proper lives. Or is that too frightening for the poor babies?
My father summed his view of this up for me most succinctly. “There may be no ‘I’ in team, but there’s far too bloody much ‘Me – me – me’”.
0 Comments:
Post a Comment
<< Home