Workplace Cynicism

 

Cynicism is pretty much in vogue. Mind you, I suspect it's always been in vogue, well before the Marquis of Cynìcse famously remarked "mon élicotère est plein d'anguilles" in response to a question about the monarchy (etymology of "cynicism", in case you're wondering).
This is particularly relevant when it comes to one's workplace - witness pretty much anybody's response to an exhortation to do good by the company. I mean, "The company doesn't give a s**t about me, why should I give a s**t about the company" is pretty much is a fact of life these days, isn't it?

The thing is, it is all too easy to mix up the Company with the People That Work At The Company. If anything, that's pretty much the job of whoever is doing brand-management at the company, that's their job, and they tend to be very good at doing so!

But, and this is important, don't fall into that trap. Oh, by all means, be cynical about the company that you work for, but give your colleagues - and your boss! - a fair shot.
Think about it this way - you work with someone worthy, someone that you enjoy working with, that, heck, someone that you're actually friends with  - the question you should be asking yourself is "How do I make them successful?"

Why? Well, if they are *not* successful, then they'll probably end up getting evicted from the company, in which case you'll end up with somebody new/different, and hey, you never know what kind of person they are going to be, right? (Of course, this assumes that you're not working at one of these places 🙄).
So yeah, even from a pure self-interest kinda place, it's worth it.
Note that I'm not actually referring to the straightforward stuff around delivering on your responsibilities, and helping them do their bit - that's the easy part. The trickier part is figuring out what makes them tick, what keeps them happy, and knowing how they define success. e.g.

• Are they over-working themselves to help out the team? Make sure that they know that you appreciate it, and look for ways in which you can help out. Sometimes just staying with them in the office (post-COVID, of course) while they work late can make all the difference.
• Are they dog peoples? Cat peoples? Do you even know? If not, find out, eh?
• Help celebrate their victories, and commiserate when they lose - it'll help reduce their burden.
• And so much more, all those "soft-skills" that are oh-so-important, and oh-so-frequently neglected 🤬

A little side-bar here - the colleagues part is self-evident, but let's focus for a moment on your boss. A good one is someone who, during your stint at the company, will

• Coach you, helping you do your job better
• Mentor you, by growing your skill sets, and improving your career prospects
• Sponsor you, helping you leave the nest when you've leveled up
• Grow your network through *their* relations

Yes, yes, if you don't have a good boss, and you have agency, what are you even doing there in the first place? Collecting a paycheck? If so, it better be a damn big one! Anyhow, the point here is, don't extend your cynicism about your company to your boss! If you've got a good one, treasure them, learn from them, help them in exactly the same way as you'd help your other colleagues, and, I repeat, don't extend your cynicism about your company to them!

Finally, if *you* are the boss, then you're one of the Good ones, right?