Zero Tolerance
It seems there is zero tolerance for anything these days. No room for error. I’m reminded of the Soup Nazi episode on Seinfeld where the owner would tolerate absolutely no deviation from what he thought was acceptable. Hilarious.
I’m from Denver, Colorado. Though I’m not a huge Broncos fan, I do follow them and their exploits. Their second year coach, Josh McDaniels was fired after a mediocre season and losses that were unacceptable to the owners and the fans. I felt sorry for him in a way. I think you should give a guy a fair shake beyond just two years. Heck, it takes a good year just to ramp up to the expectations and demands of any new job.
Zero tolerance. Beyond the pressure put on sports figures, I wonder how many of us use a zero tolerance policy toward ourselves. Do we give ourselves a fair shake, or do we berate ourselves for not living up to our expectations? No soup for us. We won’t put up with imperfections or mediocre results in whatever expectations we have for ourselves.
There is a healthy place for striving to be who we were meant to be and living a life of integrity. Those things need monitoring and the participation of others. But when expectations become unwieldly or irrational it’s time to fire the soup nazi and hire a more equitable boss.
December 7, 2010 @ 9:02 pm
Good Reminder – Thanks, Jeff.