Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
A person who says that tells me a couple of things:
1. That person is unable to think for themselves or question what they are told, simply if a person in charge said it, it must be true and the right thing to do.
2. They don’t want accountability if they do something bad or wrong.
We need to foster an attitude of constantly questioning all authority and seeing whether it is righteous and justified or not. Blind obedience only benefits those in charge.
If you follow orders, you are obedient, but also seen as dumb. Your boss will NOT think of you when considering a raise or giving you more responsibility. You don't use your brain, after all. You simply do as you're told.
But on the other hand, if you question authority, i.e. your boss, you are seen as combative and argumentative. I had a boss tell me this, and this was one of the reasons he fired me.
So what the heck should an employee be?? Either way, you are screwed.
This isn't really a work related question; it has more to do with military/police/civic ethics where there are specific chains of command and underlings are conditioned not to question commands - unless they're willing to put something between their career and their life on the line.
If a boss demands an employee do something illegal or unethical, there's not much legal protection for the employee if they follow that order... but it still happens because refusal probably means loss of the job. So their defense becomes the lame, "But I was told to do it!"
I agree, if taken with a very heavy grain of salt.
Many times you, the employee don't have all the facts and details (and don't need to know them) behind a decision. It isn't productive to have to explain all the details to everyone involved. Don't use this attitude as an excuse to not listen to/argue with your boss on every decision. They often have more information than you do.
Many times you, the employee don't have all the facts and details (and don't need to know them) behind a decision. It isn't productive to have to explain all the details to everyone involved. Don't use this attitude as an excuse to not listen to/argue with your boss on every decision. They often have more information than you do.
So an employee should never question orders, because the boss is smarter? Even when, say, the directive is to find or invent violations to allow the company to cancel franchise contracts?
(See current stories on the hit-woman who ran Subway franchises out of business, on orders from above, so the corporation could pick up the going operations.)
All depends on who have the most control over it. It doesn’t matter what you think is right or wrong, but if there is nothing you can do about it, then yes, I am simply following orders because I cannot overthrow whoever is above me.
A person who says that tells me a couple of things:
1. That person is unable to think for themselves or question what they are told, simply if a person in charge said it, it must be true and the right thing to do.
2. They don’t want accountability if they do something bad or wrong.
We need to foster an attitude of constantly questioning all authority and seeing whether it is righteous and justified or not. Blind obedience only benefits those in charge.
All depends on who have the most control over it. It doesn’t matter what you think is right or wrong, but if there is nothing you can do about it, then yes, I am simply following orders because I cannot overthrow whoever is above me.
So you'll go shoot the contractor who's competing for your firm's business, because the boss says so?
Or go sabotage their trucks?
Or file false reports on build quality of their jobs?
Or... what?
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
