Avoid the Peter Principle

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The Peter Principle is a famous idea that, simply, people get promoted until they're in a position they're simply not good at.  Too many people are promoted to their level of incompetence.

This is often used in many jokes, but it's actually something I take seriously.  I take it seriously as I've seen it in action.

I also take it seriously because it scares me, as it is even more important to career geeks and profans like us.  We, yes we, the cool and creative and hip and obsessive people are in even MORE danger of the Peter Principle affecting us.  We are, in short, in more danger of being promoted far beyond our level of competence.

The danger is that we often like what we do and can miss when we're bad at it.

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News of the Day 10/16/2009

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Economics/Freakonomics/Geekonomics:
Bank of America having problems – Another big one in trouble. As I've noted – and quoted columns noted even more – we haven't flushed the toxic mess out of the banking system or instituted good regulations. Make sure your bank is stable (for peace of mind) and I don't see any real "green shoots" despite the Dow – too many troubles remain.

Ed harrison rips into the culture of greed and the need for regulation here and here. Interesting from an ethical view but also a Freakonomic view on the odd, and often contradictory things people believe regarding the economy. Read up, it'll make you think and possibly surprise you.

Tech startup execs seem more optimistic – Not sure if its delusion, adaption, or if things have gotten so bad now up is likely. Good news on the job front – and possibly the investment front.

Publishing:
Walmart is competing with Amazon in the online book space with a price war. Interesting to see. That's someone else nipping at Amazon's heels – but also means Walmart might enter some of the other areas (like ebooks) – which of course puts them in competition with very competent companies. More text wars, more everything wars, stay on top of this.

Social Media:
Why companies need to embrace social media and not ban it – and need to 'get it'. Food for thought for your company policy.

How Social Media is changing our daily lives – Not a throwaway article. It's got some food for thought and is good if you're a user or in the business – since the business will be expected to support these changes.

Technology:
Google says android adoption is about to explode – and pretty much gives away a major motivation – more mobile users means more searches, means more Google. Android seems to be doing well, and with Google's backing, well – it's a factor. Get used to it or even learn it (and I wonder for you develoeprs what tools let you develop/port for both iPhone and Android . . .)

– Steven Savage

Stereotype-Fu – Draw Them In

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As I have noted ad nauseum (and as we've seen ad nauseum), stereotypes often raise their heads in the business/career world.  We, being fanboys, fangirls, geeks, otaku, metalheads, what have you, can face some pretty annoying stereotypes in our professional lives.  Dealing with it intelligently is a way to both keep our sanity – and we can always turn it around to our advantage.

One of the oddest cases of being stereotypes in the work world, from an interview to a client discussion, is when the people stereotyping us FIT the very stereotype they're inflicting on us.  The person that jokes about you being a game geek themselves can repeat dialogue from Final Fantasy 7 verbatim (with voices).  The person that jokes about your body piercings has enough metal in their body to make a toolkit.  The person who snubs your taste in emo music listens to songs so depressing they're banned in several countries.

This is annoying.  This is hypocritical.

THIS is a chance to engage in some stereotype-fu and turn the stereotyping to your advantage – by connecting with the person in a way that changes their views and relations to you.

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