Monday, August 04, 2008

Day 2: Five minutes, GO!

Five minutes writing without stopping or taking my fingers off the keyboard.

Today I started training a new supervisor type. He's not a new employee. He's been manager longer than I was before I was promoted to supervisor. He's got a lot of potential. I tried to get him promoted two years ago, but there wasn't room for him until now. I also have enjoyed having him in the backfield ready to step in if there was an opening in my area where I could kidnap him and use him in my area. The hope was he was my ace in the hole to get me out of a tight spot. Sadly. That's not what happened here. What DID happen was he was used to get someone else out of a tight spot after I offered up his name as a possibility.

So. I got what I wanted. He needed and deserved to be promoted. Sadly, I'm not getting anything out of it except I get to train him. I feel like that's a compliment. I think I've only trained 3 supervisors and I, as a supervisor training a peer, take it as a compliment. The cynic in me says it's also a way for me to spread my sphere of influence. This is three people now, covering over a dozen stores who were trained by me... does it mean anything real? No. But it's there, and I like that... regardless of what is says or doesn't say about me.

This was within days of my getting in trouble at work. When I transferred from my previous area to my last area my employees got me a shirt that said "It's easier to apologize than ask permission." I'm glad they learned that lesson I guess, and I'm glad they understand that a big part of that lesson is that when you're caught, and eventually you WILL be caught, you have to take it standing up and facing the music. No waffling. No putting off the blame. Accept responsibility and apologize. If pressed give reasons, but never as excuses, and never share or shirk the blame.

Well... I got caught recently, and three days after getting an e-mail from the company owner calling me onto the carpet I was given the job of training the new supervisor. I promised my boss that I would teach the right way, and not the get around the rules way. He said he knew I'd do it right or he wouldn't have given me the job of training the new guy. The cynic in me says he said that to manipulate me into doing an outstanding job just to justify the trust he's put in me to do the training.

Obviously, my cynic needs to take a vacation.

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