What About Enemies?
4 Comments Published by Frank Lane February 24th, 2008 in Leadership, Organizational Performance, Personal PerformanceIf you work in any organization, you are always going to have friends and you are always going to have enemies. That is if you are any good. Medium performers can have only friends, but top performers always have enemies.
Oscar Wilde said, “Always forgive your enemies; nothing annoys them so much.” Robert Greene in his classic, POWER, has a section on how to use your enemies. I recommend it to you.
Lesson from here, if you don’t have enemies, you are probably not performing well enough. Don’t go out and create enemies. Just perform in an outstanding way and they will appear.
If you do have enemies, learn to use them. As Greene can demonstrate, enemies can be more useful than friends.
Frank:
For an entertaining and highly intelligent look into one work environment with many “friends” and “enemies” check-out Aaron Sorkin’s Studio 60
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Studio_60_on_the_Sunset_Strip)
The dialogue is as close to brilliant as you will find on modern TV. I have a strong suspicion you will love it!!
I was very skeptical when Studio 60 was recommended to me but after one episode I was hooked. I just spent a good part of this past weekend watching episode after episode.
The reason good people in organizations attract “enemies” is because excellence will always produce envy as a byproduct. Too bad, but that is human nature. There are people who don’t want to hitch a ride on a rising star…they would rather shoot it down. A perverse kind of pleasure, no?
frank:
what you said about “enemy” is a guidance to a young girl who just start her career. As a young teacher working in a College, Recently I was confused by the fact that I never hurt anyone intentionally but there are always someone want to attack me. My opinion on Sexuality in China bring me trouble I never expected.
Whatever ,If this kind of thing happen again ,I will reread your article, get courage and comfort, more importantly , put my mind in the right thinking track.
Thank you.
best wishes
Chendan
This post couldn’t have hit the nail on the head any better. I’ve been in sales for the last 13 years and I have always created enemies with increased results and spotlight. It amazes me how people feel threatened and begin to sabotage and undermine inorder to level the playing field and comfort their insecurities. No wonder so many managers “hire down” to protect their position.
Love the post.
Regards
Brad