And that’s the way it is

Sometimes, I cannot be sweet/understanding/magnanimous when people I am relying on fail to deliver.  Such is the case with a young man whose company I hired to help us with a project for FOF. He really seemed smart, creative  and passionate. Unfortunately, the minute we hired him, he disappeared from the scene and four of of his employees stepped in to handle the project. Not one, not two, not three, but four. They talked up a storm, sent progress reports, had lengthly  conference calls with us, and, at the end of the day they didn’t do a thing I and the staff of FOF couldn’t have accomplished in a fraction of the time. To make matters worse, they told us, on three different occasions, that they were making great progress when, in fact, they weren’t making progress at all.


I had enough yesterday and told two of the team of four how I felt. It wasn’t the first time I had expressed my disappointment with their lack of progress, but I expressed it a lot more strongly. Their reactions? Uber defensive, critical of my criticism, arrogant, delusional about the facts and completely unable to accept a shred of responsibility for their lousy performance.

One of the best things about being FOF is being able to tell it like it is, without worrying about winning a popularity contest. I set high standards for myself, and for those who work with me. I have since I was a young girl and I’m unlikely to relax them any time soon. If my expectations are too much for someone to handle, they shouldn’t expect our relationship to have a fairytale ending.

 

0 Responses to “And that’s the way it is”

  1. Cateyes says:

    The beauty of age is that we learn we have the right to express our opinion and we learn that if others don’t like it, that isn’t our problem. We “cut to the chase” and learn that we don’t have to hold in how we feel about a certain subject, issue, opinion or event. I’m 55 and have no problem expressing myself. I also dress as I want to, not subscribing to the opinion of so many that we should look as old as we are. Excellent article!

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  2. Sharon says:

    Congratulations. I’ve just gone through an episode of expressing my opinion verbally and in writing that is opposite to what our Condo Board wants to do. I no longer have to be compliant and agreeable to be a member of a team. Fabulous over Sixty here.

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  3. Cecile says:

    Ahhhh the feeling of freedom of speech!!! Yes! you have exercised the right to tell these fellows exactly how you feel.. The best part? It keeps on getting easier!!!!

    Cecile

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