Often at work, I hear the analogy “so and so” isn’t the sharpest tool in the shed. But sometimes, that isn’t necessary to get ahead in the company rat race…
For example, the guy that sits in the cube next to me is one of the smartest technology individuals in the building. I admit, he’s smarter and more crafty that I am… He has plenty of awards for the incredible things that he has done at the company…
And yet, he is at the same level in the hierarchy as I am and probably makes less money. It doesn’t make sense huh!
So why is this the case?
He lacks a certain ability to distinguish morally correct behaviour vs deviant behaviour. Actually, he’s the kind of person that I would describe as a malicious hacker, and I wouldn’t even keep him onboard if I owned the company.
My boss know that he’s not trustworthy and does some questionable activities, but also recognizes that he has a certain value and genius about him. Sometimes, he has gotten caught and reprimanded, but never disciplined to a high degree. Typically he blows the entire punishment off.
I feel sorry for him in some ways… If he would control the way he behaves (even if he had to fake it), I’m sure he could become a director or VP.
Below is a quick list of the activites that I find questionable?
- Remotes into his home servers and works on family activities (facebook, make family videos, etc) while on company time.
- Makes and takes Personal calls during work for hours at a time, at least until his boss comes over.
- Plays practical jokes on people, taking way to long to create some of the uncomfortable jokes he plays. He’s kind of creepy this way…
- Run untested code, sometimes communicating to external clients by accident (this was embarrassing).
- Occasionally he takes 3+ hour lunches.
This list is just scratching the surface, but I won’t go beyond this list…
Sometimes the Sharpest Tool in the Shed is too sharp and dangerous and should be used with care or not used at all 😉
Have you ever encountered someone that was so clever and also so bored that they go outside of the comfort range acceptable in the workplace?
-MR
Your coworker may have an IQ, but it is shocking he still has a job. He is a big scammer that surprisingly hasn’t gotten his comeuppance. He would drive me insane if I worked with him.
Does he still get his work done, or does he end up dumping it on your guys at the last minute?
I even dislike your coworker!
We haven’t had anybody like that, but we do get a bunch of employees with high IQs and little else going for them. My company’s hiring process includes an SAT-like test and a personality test. Only the high IQs get hired…mostly only high IQ conservatives (I have no idea how I slipped through, lol…I think it was my score…just too tasty to pass up even in a liberal, hahaha).
So, everybody I’ve ever worked with has an above average IQ, but we still have some crappy employees.
We had one guy who really believed that he was only paid to show up and thought he deserved a raise to actually work.
We currently have a guy that is dissatisfied and does crappy work because of it…we have to pick up the slack. I cannot wait until he finds another job since I know my supervisors won’t fire him (they hardly have ever fired anyone and this guy is one of my supervisor’s brother-in-law). Ick.
@Everyday Tips
Lol, Yeah… he does drive me crazy! He’s older that I am, but very child like in behavior!
He a good worker if you give him exact instructions and constantly make sure he is working on them.
I cope (although I have asked to move to a different cubicle quite a few times 😉 )
@Budgeting in the Fun Stuff
It amazes me the conduct and beliefs that brilliant people have.
As a child, I always assumed that if you were really, really smart… the answers would be there or come easy to you.
I’ve learned this isn’t so… Working with patent owners and former employees from IBM, Microsoft and similar companies. I learned that they are neither smarter nor do the answer come easier to them.
I know of a VP, that has a high IQ that continually forgets the keys to his office, and also continually lock himself out of his car.
I think Onstar now unlocks his car 😉
While intelligence isn’t to be discounted, communication and work ethic is equally important!
Very interesting article. After working in an office for a while I noticed so many of these people. They may have book smarts but they have no idea how to be a professional and conduct themselves in that matter. As a result they are stuck in cube land like the rest of the masses.
I can understand how you feel about this person but there is one like that in almost every situation. I know of a teacher who is brilliant at getting the concepts across but cannot relate to students (or other staff) on a personal level. Despite lots of complaints this person was kept around because ‘she is good at what she does…and test scores are what get looked at, not interpersonal skills’.
@Find and share referral rewards
With the guy beside my cube, it almost like he’s missing something… He’s very immature in some respects, but brilliant in others. Perhaps he’ll learn to fake it. He’s a smart guy and likes to experiment.
@Lulu
I guess to get ahead, you really need the complete package!
Thanks for stopping by!