Crushed on American Idol

"You can accomplish anything you want to." One of the more ridiculous of statements from the motivational speakers. NO you can't. American Idol is proof positive.

I've noticed an interesting trend on the preliminary rounds of Idol in the last few weeks. The contestants who come in to the audition with a pompous attitude and false bravado touting their (ahem) talent aren't making the cut. Kids that have been praised (perhaps even overpraised) by their families and friends for their marginal singing ability are crushed when they don't make it. Tears, swearing and tirades of parents outside the room mockingly offering, "what do you know Simon Cowell?" are commonplace on prime-time TV.

But those with a silent "knowing,"a humble demeanor and a truckload of talent are the ones who are on their way to Hollywood. They don't need to boast about their talent. They let their talent speak for them.

It really seems to be true: the loudest one in the room is usually the weakest one in the room.

Now if only there were a pre-qualifying round to weed out the talentless, the preeners and the delusionals, I might be able to sit through an entire hour without wondering why parents won't be brutally honest with their kids. It's a shame to find out you have no talent in front of millions of people when your parents could have saved you the embarrassment by simply being honest instead of trying to coddle your delicate, little self-esteem - only to have it stomped on and crushed on international television.

Thanks Mom and Dad. Great attitude (wink). And don't get me started on beauty pageants for five year-olds. There's a psych ward waiting for those parents.
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Attitude w/ ATTITUDE by Kevin Burns - Corporate Attitude/Culture Strategist

Creator of the 90-Day Strategy to Greatness Culture


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Bad Boss And The Attitude of Service

Maybe you find yourself just standing and staring right at your boss's office door wondering why the jerk-boss behind that door doesn't give you the praise you think you deserve. You know you have to go back to work but you find yourself struggling to come up with one good reason (other than being fired) to actually give a best-effort knowing full well you won't even get a grunt of acknowledgment for your efforts. (That's when the thoughts of lottery winnings pop into your head and you picture yourself standing on his desk, reaching down and grabbing him by that stupid yellow tie he always wears to work and saying, "You can take a long, hard" .... um ... heh heh ... sorry got a little off-track there.)

Have you ever wondered why a leader, manager or boss would not acknowledge or praise the work of his or her people? Truth is, anyone who doesn't praise his or her employees is not a leader. Stop calling him or her that. It's insulting to real leaders.

People who don't praise others are lacking in self-confidence. It takes confidence to praise someone's effort. And you don't have to be in management or in a supervisory position to offer a compliment on someone's hard work. People who choose to say nothing when it comes time to acknowledge a contribution don't wish to be outshone - that's why they say nothing. People who hold back praise do it for selfish reasons.

Problem is, if they are in management, it's worse. Managers need to get people to work for them. But people don't give a full effort and do NOT engage in their work when there is no acknowledgment or praise. This is where you need to develop an Attitude of Service. Service is not just about how you serve customers. Service is an Attitude. Customer Service is a department. Treating others how you would wish to be treated requires an Attitude of Service (one of the seven Attitudes discussed in detail in my forthcoming book, "Your Attitude Sucks - Fixing What's Wrong With Corporate America.")

Be in service to someone - offer a heartfelt compliment today and see how much better your day gets.

But if you want to make sure you're viewed as the worst boss ever then don't give people the credit they deserve. Your people will serve you only as well as you serve them.

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Attitude w/ ATTITUDE

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