What To Do After You've Done A Bad Job

So, you just did a bad job.

It's not that you don't care or don't have the skills, you just missed the mark and have been informed of this. You've had a tough feedback session where you found you had little to say and were served enough humble pie to sink the USS Alabama. You're probably not the proud owner of a flux capacitor or a Delorean with time travel capabilities, which means that the only thing you can apply yourself to now is your reaction. You need to demonstrate that you are in fact awesome, and then all this unpleasantness can be eclipsed by something more positive. So, where to now?

• Attitude. An obvious one, but humour me. This is my stance: let them point fingers at my skills and experience, because I'm still working on these. They're better every day. Let them point fingers at my knowledge because this is something I am continually investing in. But I won't give them a reason to point fingers at my attitude. This is because attitudes come from personalities and personalities seldom change, and people know this. It's a statement about the individual's approach and is the gatekeeper of potential. Poor attitude is a label which is difficult to rip off. Potential is held back by poor attitude. Choose to be the guy that has stuff to learn rather than the guy who won't, or doesn't want to, or the guy we don't want to ask because he's going to mope about it for a week. Recovery from tough feedback should be lead by an overt can-do response to everything, and positivity.
• Show Interest. It's easy to respond by hibernating for a bit: sitting in your corner, putting your earphones in and listening to Radiohead. But there's still stuff going on around you and business will not slow down to aid your recovery. Ask questions and involve yourself in the stuff that's going on around you. If you hear your boss or someone talking about something that you can contribute to, involve yourself. This thing is not about personalities, and hibernation will just amplify the awkwardness for you. Add value to things where you can. Choose to learn and be open about it. Thank people for their input. Courage.
• Maximum Attention. Be at work while you're at work. You may need to limit your distractions for yourself for the next little while, at least until you're flying again and being appreciated. Some maturity will be required here as you figure out what these are. Perhaps you should only be checking your Twitter at certain times, or getting into the office at a time when you can start strong. Focus on what is required for a convincing and effective recovery and push aside all that doesn't help you.

You can turn your toughest critics around. Your responsibilities and personal brand are yours to own.

The Silent 'U' In Team

'How are we doing with that report?' Officespeak. It's the stuff we say in the work place when we momentarily lose the skills to speak English.

This is one of my personal favourites and it happens every time we refer to the group of us instead of to the person we're actually addressing. Obvious responsibility is extracted and replaced with obscurity masked as teamwork. Other examples include 'Have we managed to find out where the discrepancies came from?', or 'Do we think we'll make the deadline we've been given?' There's the suggestion of joint responsibility, but don't be fooled - you're still The Man.

It's almost as if the Asker has been involved in something all along but has now forgotten the status of everything and has approached you to help them remember. They're almost referring to themselves in the third person, and a forgetful third person at that. The Asker lacks the confidence to ask a direct question so they soften and mask it in such a way that you feel like you're on a team for a split second. Until you realise that you're still completely responsible and the only involvement of the Asker is to ask confusing questions, apparently. 'What do we think the reason for the issue is?' Despite the suggestion that both parties are solving a problem, there is not usually an opportunity to respond with 'Since we're both thinking about this in concert, why don't you give me your take first.' This would usually be inappropriate.

[If you have an image of Bill Lumbergh from Office Space in your head right now, coffee mug in hand, I wouldn't be surprised.]

It's important to appreciate at this point that there are many well-meaning, concerned managers who lack the self confidence and relative aggressiveness that is sometimes required. The intention of this post is not to create resentment between you and them, but rather to help us all avoid confusion and be the model employees which we need to be.

'Would it be possible for us to work late tonight?' There are layers within this one. On the surface it sounds like the fake teamwork thing which turns out to be a masked direct question, which you'd identify quite swiftly if you'd read this post, but then you realise it's not even a question. It's a statement about what's expected. So, you'd be about to respond with 'Sure, I've been hoping for an evening with you instead of my family..' when you realise that not only will the Asker not necessarily be in the building but that the question was rhetorical. Previous learnings about teamwork and actual responsibility almost prepare you for this one.

Be vigilant folks. These people need our support, and understanding them is the first step.