Snakes in Suits: When Psychopaths Go to Work
Babiak, Paul; Hare, Robert D.
Published by HarperBusiness 2007-05-08, 2007
Tuesday, August 20, 2013
Where'd You Get Your Idea? Kinkos and Paul Orfalea...Amazon & Jeff Preston Bezos
Product Details
- Paperback: 288 pages
- Publisher: Penguin Books (December 1, 1997)
- Language: English
- ISBN-10: 0140253025
- ISBN-13: 978-0140253023
- Product Dimensions: 7.8 x 5 x 0.5 inches
- Shipping Weight: 4 ounces
- Average Customer Review: 4.9 out of 5 stars See all reviews (14 customer reviews)
- Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,241,406 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
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The Story behind Kinkos and Paul Orfalea-
Kinko's Copies Corp. was founded in 1970 by Paul Orfalea, a young man of Lebanese ancestry who gave the company the nickname given him for his curly red hair. Self-described as mechanically inept and dyslexic, he was a "C" student at the University of Southern California, from which he graduated with a degree in finance in 1971. By then Orfalea had observed, "If you can't fix things and can't read things, then you can't get a job," but in fact he apparently never looked for one, for he had already concluded, as he later told a Forbes interviewer, "I'm sort of unemployable. I'm basically a peddler..."
The Story Behind Amazon - Jeff Bezos
Jeffrey Preston "Jeff" Bezos (/ˈbeɪzoʊs/;[4] born January 12, 1964) is an American internet entrepreneur and investor. He is a technology entrepreneur who has played a key role in the growth of e-commerce[5] as the founder and CEO of Amazon.com, an online merchant of books and later of a wide variety of products. Under his guidance, Amazon.com became the largest retailer on the World Wide Web and a top model for Internet sales.[6] In 2013, Bezos purchased The Washington Post newspaper.[7]
Amazon.com[edit source | edit]
Bezos founded Amazon.com in 1994 after making a cross-country drive from New York to Seattle, writing up the Amazon business plan on the way. He initially set up the company in his garage.[21] He had left his "well-paying job" at a New York City hedge fund when he "learned about the rapid growth in Internet use", which coincided with a "then-new U.S. Supreme Court ruling [that] online retailers [would not] have to collect sales taxes in states where they lack a physical presence"; he had headed to Washington because its relatively small population meant fewer of his future customers would have to pay sales tax.[11]According to Forbes, Amazon's shares "defied gravity" in 2011, jumping 55% and adding $6.5 billion to Bezos's net worth.[22]
Bezos is known for his attention to business details. As described by Portfolio.com, he "is at once a happy-go-lucky mogul and a notorious micromanager: "an executive who wants to know about everything from contract minutiae to how he is quoted in all Amazon press releases."[21]
http://personalityspirituality.net/articles/the-michael-teachings/chief-features/self-deprecation/
Self-deprecation means belittling yourself, or running yourself down, both internally and in the eyes of others. It is a drive to make yourself small or even invisible.
Self-deprecation is defined as:
In this case, however, the basic strategy is to get in first—to launch a preemptive attack on your own failings before anyone else can do so. While the arrogant person tries to deny their imperfections by feigning perfection, the self-deprecating person believes their own imperfection is absolute: I am simply not as good as other people… And it’s perfectly obvious to everyone else, so there’s no point denying it.
Like all chief features, self-deprecation involves the following components:
Perhaps the parents are perfectionists and expect the child to measure up to an impossible standard. Perhaps the parents are over-achievers and cannot accept having a child who isn’t similarly talented or driven. Either way, the child can never be up to scratch.
Again and again, the child in this position learns that “who I am is not good enough.” The love, care and attention that he craves is unavailable, and the reason for this is—apparently—his own deficiency as a person. His constant sense of failure, and of being a constant disappointment to others, give rise to a fundamental sense of shame.
Hence:
The child feels like a gatecrasher in life, an uninvited guest, an interloper, and constantly fears being caught and exposed.
His attempts at living a normal life cause great internal conflict because he feels a normal life is not something he deserves, being below standard as a human being.
His basic strategy for coping with this threat is to manipulate others’ perceptions in advance. Typically this involves:
Outwardly, he also pretends to be the most inadequate person in the world—so that anything he then manages to do just adequately or even better comes as a nice surprise to everyone and might even elicit praise.
He might even become so adept at deliberate self-deprecation that it develops into a personal style of humour, much enjoyed by other people. His obvious lack of arrogance will also be attractive to some. If he completely identifies with the sense of inadequacy, however, this could have a debilitating effect. Whenever he receives praise or appreciation, he will simply not believe it.
All people are capable of this kind of behaviour. When it dominates the personality, however, one is said to have a chief feature of self-deprecation.
Self-deprecation is defined as:
- The disparagement of one’s own abilities; [1]
- Communication that expresses something negative about its originator; making negative statements regarding one’s own appearance or abilities, such as saying “I’m so fat” or “I’m such an idiot”; [2]
- Expressing disapproval or being critical of oneself. [3]
In this case, however, the basic strategy is to get in first—to launch a preemptive attack on your own failings before anyone else can do so. While the arrogant person tries to deny their imperfections by feigning perfection, the self-deprecating person believes their own imperfection is absolute: I am simply not as good as other people… And it’s perfectly obvious to everyone else, so there’s no point denying it.
Like all chief features, self-deprecation involves the following components:
- Early negative experiences
- Misconceptions about the nature of self, life or others
- A constant fear and sense of insecurity
- A maladaptive strategy to protect the self
- A persona to hide all of the above in adulthood
Early Negative Experiences
In the case of self-deprecation, the early negative experiences typically revolve around failing to live up to parents’ high expectations.Perhaps the parents are perfectionists and expect the child to measure up to an impossible standard. Perhaps the parents are over-achievers and cannot accept having a child who isn’t similarly talented or driven. Either way, the child can never be up to scratch.
Misconceptions
From such experiences of being constantly below standard, the child comes to perceive himself as something fundamentally flawed, basically inadequate.Again and again, the child in this position learns that “who I am is not good enough.” The love, care and attention that he craves is unavailable, and the reason for this is—apparently—his own deficiency as a person. His constant sense of failure, and of being a constant disappointment to others, give rise to a fundamental sense of shame.
Hence:
Who I am is not good enough. Nothing I can do will ever be good enough.
I should feel ashamed of myself just for being me.
Even before I try, I know I’m going to fail—so there’s no point in even trying.
At least I will always be right about one thing: my inadequacy.
I have nothing of value to offer anyone. I don’t belong here. I am an impostor.
Fear
Based on the above misconceptions and early negative experiences, the child becomes gripped by a specific kind of fear. In this case, the fear is of inadequacy—never being good enough to please or satisfy others, never being good enough to deserve success or love or happiness.The child feels like a gatecrasher in life, an uninvited guest, an interloper, and constantly fears being caught and exposed.
His attempts at living a normal life cause great internal conflict because he feels a normal life is not something he deserves, being below standard as a human being.
Strategy
The growing individual becomes hyper-sensitive to the possibility of being exposed as inadequate, and sees the threat of this exposure everywhere.His basic strategy for coping with this threat is to manipulate others’ perceptions in advance. Typically this involves:
- avoiding others’ attention if possible: he will try to divert attention away from himself, keep the focus on other people or things;
- managing others’ expectations: to lower others’ expectations, he will tend to apologise in advance for every forthcoming “failure” and deliberately act as inadequately as possible so that no-one expects anything else.
I cannot succeed in life, I cannot feel good about myself, I cannot get on with others. The best I can hope for is to limit the damage by hiding myself from view.As they enter adulthood, they come to rely on this strategy more and more.
If I am belittled, I probably deserve it. But at least if I belittle myself first, I leave others with nothing to belittle me about.
Persona
Emerging into adulthood, the individual probably does not want go around being overtly afraid and insecure about their fundamental inadequacy. Hence the defensive strategy of self-deprecation puts on a mask of invisibility. He will tend to make himself small, silent and invisible; he will tend to talk very quietly, cover his face, look downward. This mask or persona continually says to the world, “I am not here. Look the other way. Pay me no attention. And if you do happen to notice me, don’t expect anything special.”Outwardly, he also pretends to be the most inadequate person in the world—so that anything he then manages to do just adequately or even better comes as a nice surprise to everyone and might even elicit praise.
He might even become so adept at deliberate self-deprecation that it develops into a personal style of humour, much enjoyed by other people. His obvious lack of arrogance will also be attractive to some. If he completely identifies with the sense of inadequacy, however, this could have a debilitating effect. Whenever he receives praise or appreciation, he will simply not believe it.
All people are capable of this kind of behaviour. When it dominates the personality, however, one is said to have a chief feature of self-deprecation.
Stress intervention and strategies to lower, eliminate and prevent occupational stress, the
harmful physical and emotional responses that occur when the requirements of a job do not
match the capabilities, resources or needs of the worker, in the workplace is the investment
organizations and employees are making in their in their lives to live productively, lessen health
related illnesses and prevent costly accidents, injury or business loss. Good stress, called eustress, provides stimulation, excitement, and a competitive edge...
Bad stress is said to be the “physiological reaction to external and internal events.” The mind
and body become unable to relax after continued stressful events. Burnout is the physical,
emotional, and mental response to constant, unmanaged high levels of stress.
Stress builds until a person feels he can no longer control his world. The result is that he
becomes paralyzed, unable to act. Sometimes these physical and psychological problems
become severe enough to cause illness and a complete inability to function. The worker feels
overwhelmed and his or her career is actually threatened.
Employee stress is a concern to organizations and management because daily anxiety wears
down a person's ability to perform at the top of his or her game and can lead to costly mistakes.
The investment in employee related stress busters, and programs such as employee assistance
programs are interventions derived from the diagnosis of stress in the workplace. The notion
of health "protection" refers to intervention in the work environment to reduce worker exposures
to workplace hazards, while health "promotion" refers to individual-level interventions to equip
workers with knowledge and resources to improve their health and thereby resist hazards in the
work environment.
* stress carries a $300 billion price tag for U.S. industries In a recent Gallup Poll, 80
percent of workers said they feel stress on the job. Nearly half said they need help in learning
how to manage stress, and 42 percent said their coworkers need help in coping with stress.
* The annual cost of depression to the U.S. economy is estimated at $44 billion. Today,
depression and associated pharmacy costs are the leading financial expenditures in health care
plans.
* stress is implicated in 60 to 90 percent of medical problems that can cost the average
company up to 45 percent of its after-tax profits.
Stress adds to the cost of doing business in many ways.
· Absenteeism Stressed-out employees miss work both as a coping mechanism and due
to health-related problems. Workers experiencing high stress are over two times more likely to
be absent more than five times per year.
· Stress-related claims fall under workers compensation claims
Symptoms of Stress
Physical symptoms include: feeling fatigued, exhausted, or drained, irritability/lower tolerance
levels, muscle tension, achy joints, headaches, upset stomach or loss of appetite, susceptibility
to illness
Emotional symptoms include depression/hopelessness, frustration,loss of self-esteem, feeling
powerless or trapped, and anxiety/nervousness
Behavioral symptoms include: inability to laugh at daily situations, social withdrawal from
coworkers, peers, and family members, change in job performance: increased tardiness or
absenteeism and decreased efficiency or productivity, self-medication—increased use of
alcohol, tranquilizers, or other mood-altering drugs
Stress Reduction Strategies
Have a stress-control plan
"Command and Control" techniques
• destroy counterproductive, stress-producing habits
• adopt new, effective habits
• become mentally tough, emotionally in control
• communicate in a positive way
Don’t wait until things spiral out of control. Use the following strategies to control and lower the
levels of stress in your life.:
· Keep your sense of humor
· Pace yourself
Use good time management strategies to help manage your workload. Set realistic deadlines
and goals. Identify job activities that could be simplified or delegated and create contingency
plans to deal with unexpected events.
· Reinforcement
Value yourself and your contribution to the company. Do the best work you can, even if you feel
no one is noticing. Share your achievements with your boss. Vow to keep a positive outlook.
· Release stressful feelings
Being frequently angry, filled with rage or anxiety, and is not healthy. Find a sport or exercise
that works for you and make sure to schedule time for regular physical activity. If you become
stressed out at work, take a brisk walk to help release pent up emotions and aid the body in
eliminating harmful chemicals.
· Practice good nutrition
Stress robs your body of needed vitamins and minerals such as vitamin B and vitamin C,
potassium, calcium, and zinc. A number of studies have concluded that stress increases one’s
susceptibility to illness. Eating fresh fruits and vegetables, maintaining a balanced diet and
limiting the amount of caffeine, nicotine, and sugar promotes health and improves your ability to
handle difficult situations.
· Talk to someone
Have an emotional outlet. Share your burden; discuss stressful events with another person.
Often an associate, friend/loved one or Employee Assistance Program (EAP) counselor can
help you see the lighter side or offer a fresh approach to a problem.
· Take time for yourself
Take stress breaks during the day. Stretch at your desk. Take short vacations away from the
job at least twice a year. It is important to take time off for yourself especially during stressful
periods.
· Understand stress triggers.
· Support stress-relief programs.
· Offer mental-health benefits.
Employer practitioners in diagnosing stress in the workplace are implementing:
* development of improved methods and tools for job stress research, including
surveillance instruments to better understand how the organization of work is changing
* studies to further understand how workplace stress contributes to illness, injury at
work, and disease development, including study of intervening factors and laboratory-based
research of underlying biological mechanisms
* investigations of stress in understudied populations, occupations and sectors
* studies to better understand the socioeconomic cost and burden of job stress
* studies to identify effective multilevel intervention strategies to prevent stress at work
3 Websites relating to Stress, one page summary
,
How to avoid stress-related disability claims
Article Abstract:
Stress-related disability cases brought against employers represent 11 percent of all
occupational disease claims. The three types of stress-related claims against employers are:
(1) mental impairment caused by physical injury, (2) physical illness caused by stress, and
(3) mental disability caused by stress. Stress-related disability claims are governed by state
laws. Several stress-related disability cases heard in Pennsylvania courts are briefly discussed.
Because the most common causes of stress involve supervisory conduct or employer action
or inaction, minimization of stress-related claims can be achieved by training supervisors
in: interpersonal skills, employee evaluation, employee motivation, employee counseling,
disciplining and discharging employees, supervisory skills, and conflict management. Other
stress-preventing measures include: hiring employees to fit job requirements,instituting
employee wellness programs, and implementing employee assistance plans.
author: Voluck, Philip R., Abramson, Herberthttp://www.theanywhereoffice.com/category/work-life-balance
Managers Need to Learn to Embrace Flexible Work
June 3, 2010 by Phil Montero · 0 Comments
In consulting with companies off all different sizes in a variety of industries I’ve found one of the biggest challenges they need to overcome in order to embrace flexible work is management resistance.Despite the long list of benefits to virtual work or telecommuting many managers are simply uncomfortable with the thought of managing remote employees. That’s why a recent article by Fast Company really caught my eye. It describes 3 recent scenarios where managers didn’t want to provide workplace flexibility and the unfortunate results:
Think Possible! Continuing Adult Education.... You Can Work From Anywhere! Virtual Teams! Virtual Offices! Liquid Space!!!
http://www.theanywhereoffice.com/tag/virtual-team
"As a consultant helping companies make the shift to The Anywhere Office®, I can tell you first hand that virtual teams can be MORE effective and productive than co-located teams when instituted properly, and that “speed and quality” can be unsurpassed. But it doesn’t happen by accident; it requires a strategy and training."
https://liquidspace.com/
http://www.tesc.edu/academics/Online-Testing.cfm
Thomas Edison State College is proud to offer you the opportunity to take your exams at home with online proctoring. Using a webcam and a reliable high-speed internet connection, you can take your exams anywhere.
http://www.referenceforbusiness.com/encyclopedia/
"As a consultant helping companies make the shift to The Anywhere Office®, I can tell you first hand that virtual teams can be MORE effective and productive than co-located teams when instituted properly, and that “speed and quality” can be unsurpassed. But it doesn’t happen by accident; it requires a strategy and training."
https://liquidspace.com/
http://www.tesc.edu/academics/Online-Testing.cfm
Thomas Edison State College is proud to offer you the opportunity to take your exams at home with online proctoring. Using a webcam and a reliable high-speed internet connection, you can take your exams anywhere.
5 Tips for Virtual Collaboration – Forbes
January 9, 2013 by The Anywhere Office · 0 Comments
In this excellent Forbes article powerhouse body language expert and leadership communication coach Carol Kinsey Goman shares some expert advice about virtual collaboration.Virtual collaboration holds amazing promise. When successful, it enables talented peers to work together regardless of location and organizations to mine the collective wisdom of a widely dispersed employee population. In order to tap into this potential, enterprises are increasingly using geographically distributed teams as a key part of their business strategy.
But virtual collaboration comes with its own unique challenges — especially for leaders whose previous experience has been mainly with collocated teams. Various studies have shown that it is more difficult to get virtual teams to bond, harder for informal leaders to emerge, tougher to create genuine dialogue, and easier for misunderstandings to escalate.
As an Institute for Management Studies faculty member, I present a seminar on “The Power of Collaborative Leadership.” From that program, here are five tips for virtual collaboration:
http://www.referenceforbusiness.com/encyclopedia/
YouTube – RSA Animate – Drive: The surprising truth about what motivates us
Monday, August 12, 2013
Weblinks: Positive Cognitions- Ignite! http://www.scientology.org/videos.html#/videos,http://www.scientology.org/, Scientology: A New Slant on Life (English) Paperback ISBN-13: 978-1403146861,http://www.bing.com/videos/search?q=Les+Brown+Greatness+Center&qpvt=Les+Brown+Greatness+Center&FORM=VDRE,http://lesbrown.org/lesbrown.com/index.html,
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