Fair…it was fair…it was the right thing to do. Being fair is not an instant win. In actuality, you may lose many times being fair, before you gain…anything.
Don’t trust someone who tells you, “you have to kiss butt before you can kick butt”…it is not true. You do not have to diminish your greatness to make someone else feel comfortable…or to allow them to feel that their trajectory will not be affected by your greatness.
You have to be exceptional at all times…and still may not be respected…but you don’t have to be mistreated. Matter of fact, the more you accept being mistreated, you will continue to be mistreated and in turn people will begin to accept that was the way you want to be treated.
Performance. The more I did, the higher the expectation and the more scrutiny was received. The more I performed, the more threatening I become to others as they felt their professional trajectory halted by my mer existence. I have to be exceptional at all times, or I would be out the door.
Character was big. Huge. Heard it often. It seems as if the more character you haven the more you stand up for yourself and others, and to make things fair…the worst things got.
What I learned, not everyone wants you to succeed. Some may say they want you to succeed…but to their expectations. But, the minute you pass THEIR expectations…the “not everyone wants you to succeed” starts to veer is head.
Someone once told me, “…exceptional is not an option, but a must”. You are a minority and exceptional will be the only way you stay relevant. But, the minute you miss an opportunity or try something that may not work, you will be exponentially disciplined and may even be let go. It will not matter how you exponentially…positively affected the company’s bottom line.
Don’t look around to see if it is FAIR or not. It doesn’t matter. No one will defend you. It is not going to be fair. What you can do to avoid this, is to find allies and always work in groups. Let others take the lead. As someone once told me, cream always rises to the top…(and I add)…especially when under extreme pressure/heat.
Don’t look for being “fair” as your saving grace. As your life-line. Even if you stand up for right…you may see negative results before the positive. Just remember, you are always in the right place you’re supposed to be, just make sure you’re growing in that “place”.
“My philosophy is very simple. When you see something that is not right, not fair, not just, say something. Do something. Get in trouble. Good trouble. Necessary trouble!” – Joe Lewis