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Linda Tripp’s widely documented actions earn her the title of poster girl
for sabotage and betrayal for the past decade. Tripp is not an isolated
situation—she’s not alone.
Women like her are everywhere—your workplace, community, even a kid’s play
group. Trippers can poison the well of your workplace with her sabotaging
and manipulative behavior.
For co-workers, the fear of potential harm from a saboteur to them
personally or professionally creates an environment that is highly stressful
and toxic. That means they are less productive, morale takes a dive, and
common goals within the organization suffer. Key employees start looking for
a new job—the toxicity isn’t worth it—no matter how much they get paid.
Ignorance isn’t Bliss
Whether you are a manager or an employee, ignorance isn’t bliss. You’ve got
to deal with sabotage and undermining activities in your workplace. If you
don’t, you can lose big—your reputation, your position, and your bottom
line.
Sabotage is the act of undermining or destroying personal or professional
integrity; it creates mayhem in personal or professional lives; and it
damages personal and professional credibility. Sabotage can be done
intentionally or unintentionally and it can be delivered overtly or
covertly.
Women don’t own the art of sabotage, men do it too. Women are different in
their targets and methodology. They are more inclined to be covert (tape
recording without permission even when told its illegal a la Tripp) and
discriminating (women target other women more than they target men).
In contrast, men don't care—either gender is target material. Men are more
likely to be overt when they do it, even letting you know the day and time.
It’s the difference between backstabbing and front stabbing.
In one case, you’re unsure who caused the action; in the other, the
perpetrator is blatant and bold.
Because of the distinct differences in sabotaging behaviors of men and
women, it’s wise to know how to identify a saboteur in your workplace midst.
Ask a few questions:
• Does anyone encourage gossip? Saboteurs are superb messengers and can
hardly wait to pass on discrediting information.
• Does anyone keep a tally sheet? Saboteurs keep track of your mistakes and
share them with everyone.
• Does information pass you by? Are you out of the loop? Saboteurs isolate
their targets from regular communication links.
• Is anyone’s job in jeopardy? This past decade has been an incredible
breeding ground for change. The 21st Century will only accelerate it. When
change occurs, anxiety and fear become its companion. Either creates a
breeding ground for sabotage.
• Have new coalitions formed within your team or department? Saboteurs
switch friends and allies continually: This week an employee seems close to
another; the next week, only dust is left in their trail of friendship.
• Does anyone routinely take the credit of others or discount them (or
yours)? Saboteurs don’t bravo anyone else’s contribution to a project or
idea. The only thing that really counts is that they get credit, who cares
if they did the work or not.
• Is anyone too, too helpful? Saboteurs will actually help others to the
extent that their own work is not completed, yet visually it appears that
they have time to spare to help someone who can’t complete their own.
The work place is a breeding ground for saboteurs. Men and women at all
levels must learn to recognize, confront and then dump them.
Not everyone lands in the national press when set up. But feelings of
personal betrayal are no less devastating.
My latest national study reveals that being sabotaged by a co-worker was
identified within the top three problems women are encountering in today's
work place. The glass ceiling and sexual harassment issues—not even in the
top 10.
Managers routinely ignore this problem, more out of fear for charges of
sexism than anything else. The question becomes, “Why?”
Businesses have initiated programs on sexual harassment, yet few men charge
“sexism” when they are the primary target/beneficiary of any training. Men
are more likely to sexually harass women, not women sexually harassing men.
Women are more likely to sabotage other women, not men sabotaging women.
It’s a form of gender harassment.
Why should women be treated any different? Both problems are significant
factors to the bottom line and must be addressed.
American businesses lose billions of dollars each year in lost productivity
because of its unwillingness to deal with this issue. Can your department or
company afford it?
# # #
© 2001-2005 The Briles Group, Inc. All
Rights Reserved.
Dr. Judith Briles is a Denver based award winning author, keynote speaker
and consultant. Her books, The Confidence Factor, Woman to Woman 2000:
Becoming Sabotage Savvy in the New Millennium, Money Smarts and
Zapping Conflict in the Workplace have all won business awards. Dr.
Briles website is www.Briles.com
and blog at
http://DrJBriles.blogspot.com. She can be reached at 800-594-0800
or e-mailed at Judith@Briles.com.
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