I guess I have reached the point where I realize, "I don't see the glass as half full or half empty, I see a glass I don't like, with something in it I did not order, and I am always going to ask for another one, preferably filled with Jack Daniels."

I have to express a little feeling today.  I have had one of those weeks that we all have, busy every waking second of the day, moving from one project/requirement to another with literally 1 minute to spare, its Thursday at 4:15 and I have 15 hours of overtime in already this week.  This has been due to the brilliance of current corporate America. 

Our country is filled with large companies, staffed by upper management that make to much, do nothing to improve the day to day operations of their company, and sit in their spots based on years with the company.  Below them is a huge stack of mid-level management and those trying to reach the ranks of the upper management. The problem with this group is two fold. 

A portion of this group actually were workers, worked their way up, and remember what doing the actual day to day work was like.  They have to ignore every instinct they have from their prior life as a worker, because the new management mantra is mandatory to follow if they want to continue up the ladder.  They feel our pain, wish they could help, secretly hate where things are going, but have no choice but to follow if they want to continue forward.

The second portion of this group are people who did whatever was needed to be promoted, job jumped, took transfers, moved from Omaha to Charlotte to Miami to Dallas to Minneapolis all within 3 years, each time gaining points with the management leaders because the were willing to do so to be promoted. Problem is they did 6 different jobs in those 5 moves, never stuck around long enough to get real experience in any of them, figured out just enough to move on and now they are managing someone who has 20 years experience doing that job and they don't even really understand what they do every day.  They look at charts, metrics, attend management seminars on how to get the most out of your workers and the majority would walk right over your desk and your burning body if the building was on fire to get to their next promotion. 

So here I sit today - in the midst of 2 weeks of mandatory online training being presented to all of the "workers" within my job class across the country.  This training was the idea of somebody on high, someone who started a project and had to get it to fruition, prove it was worth it, implement it, and shove it down our throats, so he/she could be promoted to whatever the next job class is. Now don't get me wrong, training is needed and necessary, but when you group everyone together regardless of experience, prior training, area where they work in the country, etc. and group train them online, well let's just say that is like having one big class of swimming lessons for everyone from a 4 year old who has never been in the water, to the 8 year old who won't go in the deep end, to the adult swimmer, to a gold medal swimmer.  You can't start this group out teaching them all the same thing and expect them to get the equivalent results out of this one class.

I have been told by people that I have a knack at never seeing the good in things, I find the bad and point it out, and demand it be resolved. That is called life - most people don't get patted on the butt for doing what they are supposed to do and doing it right, but they do get their butt chewed for not doing what they were supposed to do.  Don't like it, try harder to get it right next time.