Comments on: Avoiding Angel Stories

By: Douglas McDowell

Douglas McDowell — Wed, 31 Aug 2022 20:31:41 +0000

This was much needed for me. I have played both sides of this role, I’m sure. I know I have allowed my inexperience to be excused because my heart wanted to support and advocate for change, even though experience lagged behind. I’ve also not wanted to speak up when other people are in those positions, wanting to do well but with an inability to do so.

By: John

John — Sat, 07 Jun 2014 10:37:25 +0000

I often look at an angel or a devil to be the same kind of person. When monitoring their work habbits, I find that coworkers need to be scored over time not on just one or two instances. I’m sure my coworkers have had to take care of things I couldn’t solve while I had my hands in putting out another fire. It’s when a coworker doesn’t step up to the plate when he/she is needed to fill in upon my absence that I confront them about their behavure and let them know how they are messuring up or not messering up. We all are in this thing together we all need maintenance and constructive cridisium on accasion.

By: Sharon Campbell

Sharon Campbell — Wed, 01 Sep 2010 17:49:28 +0000

A variation on the “angel” story is the “poor dear” story. The “poor dear” has to cope with (an alcoholic dad, a dying mother, a drug-addicted child, a disabled child….) and therefore should get a pass on some not-helpful behavior in the workplace.

By: Anne

Anne — Wed, 01 Sep 2010 15:25:43 +0000

Yet another masterpiece! Since I have been on the e-mail list for three years now, I have learned more about effective interpersonal relationships (also from the books) than I have in all the classes I had to take to become a nurse! This one particularly hits the nail on the perverbial head, after all, it’s not supposed to be personal, just business! We have all had angels in our work environments and you are absolutely correct in stating that on their “dead wood” days, they get more sympathy than a “devil” who had a family member pass on. Again, we need to continually check our inventory about how we label our co-workers, if our perceptions of any/all our co-workers are correct on any given day and pat ourselves on the back when we survive another thoughtfully done work week.