By The Way...

Saturday, April 15, 2006
10:07:00 AM EDT
Hearing Generals and Majors -- XTC
This is a very good article from USA Today, in which CEOs expound on how someone treats a waiter is a better indication of his personality then how he treats the CEO. This of course makes perfect sense -- some ambitious twit knows enough not to be obnoxious to a CEO, but may not have the same sort of social control regarding someone lower on the status totem pole.

You don't have to be a CEO to appreciate this, nor does it have to be a waiter who is the acid test of a person's people skills; any person working a reasonably low-status job will do. In publishing, where I spend a lot of my time, the people who are rude to editorial assistants are noted and marked, and will probably one day find they've inadvertantly shut a door in their own face, because the thing about editorial assistants is that many of them eventually become editors. You do reap what you sow.


Written by johnmscalzi Blog about this entry |  Add to del.icio.us |  digg this

This entry has 4 comments: (Add your own)

• #4 Comment from lindall5 
  4/18/06 12:16 PM | Permalink

  You know I have landed some pretty good jobs while I was waiting tables.  As far as statis quo goes, when I finally obtained my degree and was able to quit waiting tables I took a cut in pay.  Teaching makes way less money than I did while waiting tables.  Actually I had to continue waiting tables my first few years teaching.  But what I wanted to comment on was I feel that you can really tell a person by the way they treat their parents especially mom.  
• #3 Comment from psychfun 
  4/15/06 7:44 PM | Permalink

  Oh just read the first comment! HA! Totally agree. We had one local establishment who was caught spitting, putting rat feeces (sorry I know that was gross but true!) in the cops dinners! MAJOR ICK!
• #2 Comment from psychfun 
  4/15/06 7:43 PM | Permalink

  I think how students treat their teacher/prof also applies! And how CEOs or lower level management treats their employees makes a big difference. Now you have to be careful with this as research because it is situational! EVERYONE probably is rude at times. What to you get to get a snapshot of & see? Maybe it is the exception rather than the rule. This is why patterns of behavior over time is really needed. Also how about rude waiters/waitresses. There is also a big difference between being upset & expressing this & being rude or like road raging aggressively! You can't keep it in nor be overly sweet because that comes across wrong as well. People who switch back & forth I totally agree. You can tell when someone is just acting & trying to get what they want or are fake! They learn what works & are manipulative....geez wait...maybe we should look at our politicians here! HA!
• #1 Comment from monponsett 
  4/15/06 12:05 PM | Permalink

  Never anger the person who handles your food behind closed doors.