Cutting Edge Consciousness: The Jerk

At a time when people can least afford to lose their jobs, it seems as if there are more ways than ever to screw up at work. Political correctness, thin-skinned coworkers, and fear of litigation have made it difficult to be direct or candid with people without crossing some sort of line. To make matters worse, the line’s a moving target. Words, phrases, and attitudes that were fine yesterday are taboo today. In short, the straight and narrow path of good workplace behavior appears to be getting straighter and narrower all the time. This week Freeman Michaels and Barnet Bain speak of the idea of being a jerk and dealing with that part of yourself. Audio clip: Adobe Flash Player (version 9 or above) is required to play this audio clip. Download the latest version here. You also need to have JavaScript enabled in your...