RULE 75 - Let The Company See You Are On Its Side

“One of the basic causes for all the trouble in the world today is that people talk too much and think too little. They act impulsively without thinking. I always try to think before I talk.”

Margaret Chase Smith, the first woman elected to both the US House of Representatives and the US Senate

To let the company see you are on its side you need to do some concrete things. Such as:

- Buy some shares
- Read the company newsletter – better still, edit the damn thing
- Support company functions
- Show an interest
- Ask questions
- Have your interest in the company noticed and recorded in some way
- Focus on what you contribute to the company, not on what you get out of it
- Use the company’s products or services
- Rehearse saying what you think is good about the company – have a ready answer to hand if asked
- Know the company’s mission statement and philosophy
- Know the company’s products and/or services inside and out
- Know the company history – its formation, its mergers and acquisitions etc., it long-term goals and its key personnel (founder etc.)
- Know the company’s social standing and what it does for the community.

What you do not do – ever – is bad-mouth the company, under any circumstances.

‘But, but, but’, I hear you say, ‘Won’t this make me out to be an OIK, a toady, a yes-person, a lackey, a company mouthpiece?’ Nope. Not if you do it right. If you mouth platitudes and seem insincere people will know it is an act and that you are a company pawn. But if you are strong about it people will take your lead and follow suit. Set an example. Be outspoken in your praise for the company. It is such an unfashionable thing to do you will make your mark, but you do have to be sincere and bold.

‘But what if I don’t feel so good about the company?’ Then get out. It’s a two-way process. They employ you. You work for them. You give and they give. You take and they take. If you’re unhappy about this relationship, then get out, get a divorce, find another lover. You have to love your company and see it as a relationship. If you’re in a bad one, what are you going to do about it? Put up and shut up? I do hope not.

Book Title: The Rules of Management

Author: Richard Templar,
Prentice Hall Business

Source: Rule 75 – Let The Company See You Are On Its Side
* Notes: This Rule 75 was extracted from one of the chapters from the book titled “The Rules Of Management” written by, Richard Templar, Prentice Hall Business