PIN STUCKING(Read this to understand) 5

[cranekiran]

Dear all,

I have been reading all your threads with interest.There is one problem I have faced in my company(& previous companies)

We call it pin-stucking here in Asia.Well!The definition is very simple.Here goes:-

If someone working with you in a company does not like you for some ediotic reason & If he happens to be close to your Boss or worse even your most Higher ups;All he does is tell your boss just about everything negative about you.The objective is of two kind:- one is to put fear in you,the other is far worse(you can fall from grace or perhaps even lose your job).Of course the modus operandi this pin stucker uses is he will start something negative himself & after getting a reaction from you,He simply reports to the Higher ups about your reaction only very conveiniently.

I try to work as professionally as possible but I guess these pin-stuckers just wont go away.This is even worse if your boss entertains such pin-stuckers without ascertaining the facts.The truth is these people never get caught since They are extremely clever & cunning employees.

Are there any more cases of pin-stucking You guys can tell me? And just how do you deal with such people?

Bye!

 

[plasgears]

Funny you should ask!
I have experienced this recently and in the past. In a professional setting, the semi-professionals like to throw barbs against professionals to support their position. True professionals do not need to resort to this. (I once had a boss who said that the know-nothings need to do this because that is all they have in defense. They have limited knowledge and limited opportunites on the outside.)

The way to cope is to do your job, inform of your progress to your boss and his boss, too. Now the top guy has a line of communication directly from you. Your boss may bring this to a halt by demanding that nothing goes out of the department without his knowledge. At least you started by bringing pertinent information to the top.

 

[PSE]

If you have the time available, (it is pretty good practice anyway) keep a log of the work your are doing on any given project. You can include a summary of relevant conversations etc. Periodically touch base with your boss to update them on your work, that way they will have information from your point of view. If you think that you cannot trust your boss, you are basically in a no-win or at best low percentage win situation. At that point you really have to decide whether or not you want to continue working there.

 

[Watermelon]

"Extremely clever and cunning"? "Does not like you for some idiotic reason"? "Put fear in you"?

Generally, a person does not develop a feeling of dislike for no reason. Why do you think he dislikes you?

When you describe your boss as cunning, you sound paranoid. Cunning is a strong word. If your boss is wasting time trying to think of ways to entrap you, then surely his boss will see that. If what you say is true, then I'd bet your boss is already being watched by his superiors.

When you suggest that your boss' reasoning is idiotic you are disrespecting your boss and his judgement. Idiotic is a strong word. Who hired you?

When you say your boss is trying to put fear in you, maybe you're over-reacting to normal business protocol. In my opinion, I should never feel completely at ease when my boss walks into the office.

I'm sorry for not being too sympatheic to you, but it sounds to me like you might have some personal problems you need to deal with.

I think plasgears and PSE offered some good advice.

Listen carefully to your boss. Try to give him what he wants. If you are not sure of what is requested, ask.

Keep a written diary of your activities.
Keep emotional reactions, no matter how slight, out of all you do.
Never again use the phrase "pin stucker".
Above all, stay focussed on your work.

 

[cranekiran]

OH Dear!

Watermelon & PSE have totally misunderstood what I meant.Probably thats why engineers can never be good writers.
What i meant was not really about my boss at all!Personally My boss is a fine gentleman.I was talking about my colleagues at work with me.Pin stuckers were attributed to few of my incompetent colleagues who survive the game by doing politics in work.

Therefore,I cap my pen here;I guess if I write more then we would be talking about safety pin manufacturing next!

I am thankfull for plasgears for his opinion as His was an understood reply.

Cheers!

 

[TheBlacksmith]

Yeah, I understand. When I was in the Navy, the only evaluation place that counted was first! Second place was the first loser. There was a lot of "back-stabbing" that went on, akin to your "pin-stucking". If you could make everyone else look bad, you could rise to the top. One of my fellow officers was really good at this. He can to each of us, his peers to seek help on his project, with an impossible deadline that we said we couldn't support. He then lied to the Commanding Officer, saying we agreed to his schedule. We didn't know about this until we were being blamed by the CO for his failure. I did not engage in this activity, which could be one reason why I'm no longer in the Navy. But I can look myself in the face in the mirror every morning, and to me that is more important. Best advice was given above, keep your boss informed of your actions, truthfully, and then he will be suspicious of these rumors and if he is a good boss, take appropriate action to find the truth. If he isn't a good boss, you're better off finding another job.

Blacksmith

 

[cranekiran]

Thank you Blacksmith,

You have made me feel 'NOT GUILTY'! after your response.

See,My boss really trusts me with whatever challenge I am given,Actually what I am today is because of my hard work & mutual trust between me & my boss.But the fact also is that I am one of many sub-ordinates working under him.Some of my colleagues with whom I work try at times to pull the carpet under my feet occassionally by resorting to politics.I know that in a company this is a natural hazard & one should learn to think it as part of a job or I daresay minor irritants.But sometimes you do wonder that do you deserve to be on the defensive because of such incompetent people.I guess I am a simple person who only believes in working honestly & going home with a free mind.

For the record,I am quite happy with my job.

Bye! & thanks for your reply.

 

[etch]

Now i recently read a book, and dont laugh (I mean when i give you the title, no the fact that i read a book). The book is one of those self help things, and i got it free (honestly) its called " how to get along with people you cant stand". Basically the book details different personalities. from the "TANK", steamrollers over you, the "know-it-all", will sit and listen to you and then say it wont work due to this or that. The "they-think -they-know-it-all", the "GRENADE" basically like the tank only has a wide damage radius and sucks everyone around him into his problem, and the one you are describing is the "SNIPER" he hides behind cover taking pot-shots at you. Now the book goes into many ways to deal with htis, but one of them is not to allow the "sniper" and cover where he can snipe unseen, challenge his comments, not confrontational, but openly, there might be a problem like you got promoted over him etc. If you take his cover away he is powerless to snipe.

 

[MASSEY]

Yea pin-stucking or back-stabbing really stinks, but like other things that really stink, like taxes and dieing, it is part of life.

I believe this is one of the great benefits of working for yourself. You don't have to deal with it so often that way.
But this facet of work life is common in all fields not just engineering obviously.

It has happened to me in the past and I'm sure will happen again in the future. The way I deal with it is like the suggestions mentioned above, but with one more key point for me. I confront the stucker/stabber if possible right in front of the person he stuck/stabbed me to.

I am honest in facets of my job, and if I find that someone has spoken ill of me whether justified or not, I speak to them about it. Get things out in the open and let them air out. This may not work other people and I admit takes a unique personality to do, what I mean is, I have got really thick skin so it doesn't really matter to me what people think of my unique personality. What does matter to me is that people are not mis-informed of my actions or intentions.

Another clever way to deal with this is to 'kill them with kindness' when someone speaks ill of me. I make it a point to let them know that I know about it but also to compliment them on some part of their job that they do and to let them know that I respect them and disappointed that they felt like they needed to 'badmouth' me to someone else because I would never do that to them.

You mentioned above that 'these people never get caught' with this I disagree. A perceptive supervisor can see right through this sort of behavior and will make a mental note of the stucker/stabbers actions. And even if the super does not see it. All things eventually come back around. It is like a circle, sometimes it is a very, very big circle but it is still a circle.

Summary: Don't sweat the small stuff, document your work and sincerely compliment colleagues every day. And if it reaches a boiling point bring it up in an office meeting and share your perspective.

And when someone does a derisional act against you, return to them with kindness, if nothing else it will drive them nuts.

Finally, an old quote from an old book "bless those that curse you, and in so doing you heap coals of burning fire upon their head."

Hang in there you are not alone.

 

[Albion]

MY solution to this problem is simple. Walk into the boss' office and lay it on the line. "I am here to do a job and I will do that job to the best of my abilities. I do not appreciate people playing corporate politics games with me, and if it continues I will find another place of employment." Jobs come and jobs go, never let one negativly effect your life in any way.

-al

 

[Sparweb]

Albion2's way is very confrontational, but if you have a good relationship with your supervisor, as you say, then do bring up the topic. I would do so a bit more diplomatically, such as "This project worked out just fine, but So-and-So has been negative all along." Now that the topic is open between you and your boss, you can begin to explore his opinion of your work and the other person's, without necessarily confronting the "stucking" if you don't want to. Depends on how direct or confrontational you are, and what your boss is like, too. Once conversation #1 is is over, you have a basis of judging whether conversation #2 should be to tell Mr. Pin-Stucker to shut the hell up, or to stand up for yourself with your supervisor.
Don't just put up with it, or you won't like your job for much longer.

STF

 

[Miper]

The best way to counteract the negatives is to continually work your alliances -- not just with your boss, but especially with coworkers in your department and in the departments that rely on you. If your co-workers think of you as reliable, supportive, friendly, and a helpful problem solver, it will be impossible for the naysayers to get the better of you.

The worst thing you can do is sit in your cubicle all day, never interacting with others in your company. You will be run over by events, if not by the back-stabbers. Every worker, even an engineer, has to keep selling himself and his work, or he gets pigeon-holed as a drone or lost in the shuffle.

Listen carefully to what your boss and co-workers need from you. Give them the most, not the least of what they expect. Have lunch with different co-workers often. Join outside activities sponsored by your company/department. Only your social interaction can effectively combat the back-stabbers. And if you are truly doing these things to no avail, then go find another job. You're too good for that place.

 

[zqew05]

Office politics will never go away, just do your job, develop a thick skin. When I was in the Navy, I worked under what you call a backstabbing boss. I thought the Department Head believed all the BS directed against me. But I was wrong, the Dept Head also has a boss and his performance is also graded. My immediate boss eventually got "transferred" away from my ship. As I gained more work experience and rose in rank I learned 2 truisms: FIRST, Bosses have bosses too. SECOND, Big bosses sweated/worked hard to become TOP BOSS and learned skills along the way to smell BS a mile away.