The Weasel and The Brain

My friend once described to me a horrendous video she watched, of how a weasel feeds on rodents. She described how it delivers a fatal blow to the back of the victim’s neck and proceeds to suck out its brains. We laughingly concluded that the process sounded a lot like managing people.

We have since, swapped stories of our “weaselling” experiences. Some were hilarious and some were simply depressing. Over the years I have worked with many bosses and as my interest in the weasel grew, I came to one very clear realization.

"WEASELLING" IS INEVITABLE BUT THERE ARE GOOD AND BAD WEASELS!

The Bad Weasel

A weasel eats all of its prey but, almost always, will start with the brain until only the nose and mouth are left. When they are supplied with many victims, they will eat out the brains and only touch the rest of the body if they get hungry again. (Carolyn M. King,2017)

The bad manager does exactly that; sucks all your knowledge and uses it to shine. They will call for large, looooong, time-consuming meetings and ask for your ideas about everything and nothing and before you know it, you have a heap of untouched work on your desk and a long list of unanswered emails and the day is gone.

But that is not all. When a weasel sees several live preys, it kills them, whether it is hungry or not, until it is exhausted and then stashes them for later. (Carolyn M. King,2017).

Bad managers believe in the power of numbers. They ask for big teams, call for meetings and "weasel"  all day long (even for ideas they do not require immediately).

At the end of the quarter/half, you will look back and you cannot, account for your time at work. Meanwhile the “weasel” is receiving accolades for completing projects on ideas you shared with them. You are left wondering what happened to all your hard work and how that does not feed into your performance reviews.

You get disengaged and soon enough, like the rodent, you die!

The Good Weasel. 

The weasel is said to perform a “Weasel War Dance” for its prey before it strikes. Many theories have been put forward to explain this but the most popular one is that it performs the dance to mesmerize the prey. (Balmain, David 2008)

The great manager does a mesmerizing act too. I recently sat through a very simple yet compelling presentation by a manager and by the time he was done I could not wait to find out my part in his plan. I did not stand a chance before his vision, his excitement, and the simplicity of his presentation. I was taken!

A "good weasel" casts an exciting vision and sells it to you. As Simon Sinek so aptly puts it, a great manager “STARTS WITH WHY”. When they are done you are so excited by the vision that you fall over yourself to share your ideas on how to make it a reality. The “Weasel” respects your time and schedules reasonable meetings to get your thoughts.

When he/she is done, they march into the higher echelons of power and show off the amazing feats their team has pulled off. When they are asked for details, they will pull you into the meeting and turn to you to answer the tough questions (It is, after all, your idea). When the idea is approved, they will put you to work to execute it. They will stretch, challenge, and applaud you and they will ask for nothing less than perfection! 

If you are a wise “rodent”, this is your time to weasel from them.

When the project is complete, they will receive the accolades and if you are lucky you will get a mention for your part in it.

But……..

They will reward you with much more than a mention-They will push for that promotion, pay bump, school funding, etc. that truly makes a difference. They will share more visions with you and you will build a formidable brand just from the things you will do for them. 

Because of that, when they receive the accolades, you will be right there with the rest of the world, cheering them on because as they “weaselled” you, you “weaselled” them right back.

So why does this all matter?

If your manager is a bad weasel, Run for your life! The weasel will go for not just your brain, but your body and then, for the delicacy, your intestines. Without a doubt, your excitement, your energy, and your dreams will be taken and as that popular nursery rhyme goes, you will have nothing left to trade and then "Pop Goes The Weasel"

If, like me, you have had the good luck of working under a great Manager, please give them your brains and pick their brains too, because life is about;

“Give and Take”

“Quid Pro Quo”

“Two to Tango”

Written by a People Addikt