Just about every book about business worth reading, tells you to ensure that you ensure the right people are in the right positions. These also teach us about the repercussions if you don’t get this right.
Over the years I’ve had my share of learnings when it comes to this. Although I must say, my most significant learning has been to believe people when they show you who they are. This comes with experience, I have realized. My biggest lesson, however, has been that anyone’s truth should not dictate your degree of kindness.
In business, you see and experience many different people. Each teaches us a lesson and make us wiser. Especially those personality types we never thought we would encounter in a professional environment. Yes, let’s talk about the psychopaths and narcissists… with them, it’s more of a case of total misalignment than a seat adjustment. They shock you, they cause distress, but they too make you wiser.
If you have experienced this, you will know that they too show you who they are early. All you need to do is believe them and not look for a justification for the behavior. That first incident illustrating a lack of empathy, accountability, and guilt is precisely that. It would be best if you acted decisively and the earlier, the better. Although, you should do the same when someone (the right person) does not perform as well as you know they can because they are in the wrong seat. In contrast, this is more often than not a case of the wrong person in the wrong seat, very destructive if left unattended.
