|
 |
|
|
|
I continue to be a fan of such shows as "The Apprentice" and "The Amazing Race". There are fewer and fewer shows that are watchable because they are legitimally good these days. Instead, I find myself watching several that are either so bad or so campy, they become enjoyable. But "The Apprentice" and "The Amazing Race" continue to please.
I guess at this point and time, my favorite of the two must be "The Apprentice". Having one foot in ministry and one foot in the Optometric industry, I find application for both in this show. It's not that I'm a huge fan of Donald Trump; I'm not really. And unlike Don Imus who enjoys the boardroom more than the rest of the show, I enjoy the task more than the boardroom. Why? Because more times than not, during the performance of the tasks, I learn what not to do in life and business more than what to do.
Case in point, during the first episode of this new season, the two teams were given the task of increasing Sam's Club memberships over the course of a Saturday. The team with the most increases would win. One team leader asked a team member who owned a few restaurants apart from the show, to make phone calls to other restaurants in town in hopes of getting them to come and join Sam's club. The team member made one call and then declared that she would not make any more. Her point was that if the team leader understood that industry as she did, he would have known that the time she had to make the calls was the dinner rush and that owners of restaurants don't answer the phone during dinner rush. Her team lost. Imagine that. In the boardroom, she took it on the chin for not doing the task that she was given. Trump's point was that she should have attempted anyway. Coupled with that, the girl kept interrupting Trump, even when the team leader was in risk of being fired, and as a result, she got fired instead.
My point? The woman's primary problem was that she didn't know when to be right. I find this a huge problem today in the workplace, between man and wife, between good friends and between parent and child. I was once told, "You can be right in what you say, but wrong if you are right in the wrong volume." I would add to that, "You can be right in what you say, but wrong if you say it at the wrong time."
The woman on the show should have completed the assignment given to her. In the boardroom, she could have said, "Mr. Trump, I did what I was told, but had the team leader thought through it, he would have had me do this task at a different time. His biggest problem was that he did not understand his customer." Then I think Mr. Trump would have respected her opinion instead of disrespecting her for not following orders.
We do this all the time in life. When our children are at their lowest and have a made a mistake, we have to tell them what they did wrong instead of comforting them. When our spouse has screwed up royally, we lack sensitivity over when we should address the issue. We do this even in the presentation of the truth of Jesus Christ. After you have heatedly argued with someone over issues such as homosexuality, evolution, whatever, people are not likely to hear you when you speak of the love of Jesus.
Here we would be wise to listen to the words of Paul when he said, "Let your speech always be with grace; seasoned with salt, that you may know how you ought to answer each one." Colossians 4:6. Not only must we speak truth to each other, we must do it graciously so that we might be heard.
|
Good article!
I think she should have talked with her project leader beforehand. That way she could have been doing something more productive. She kept the info until she was already making her first call....and I can't believe I'm commenting on the Apprentice. great article though
Gordon, excellent article!!!
Saint Francis of Assisi put it this way, "Preach the Gospel; use words if necessary."
The show can certainly be educational, tho not necessarily teaching you what you, or probably the producers, would assume to learn from a so-called business reality show. I always see great examples of 'Group Think,' work ethic principles, team dynamics, & argument structure.
|
|
|
|
(6)
Good article! Posted by Malcolm | Posted at 04/28/2006 7:40 PM
I think she should have talked with her project leader beforehand. That way she could have been doing something more productive. She kept the info until she was already making her first call....and I can't believe I'm commenting on the Apprentice. great article though Posted by Sean Michael Murphy | Posted at 05/02/2006 10:55 AM
Gordon, excellent article!!! Posted by Jim McAlhaney | Posted at 05/03/2006 5:48 AM
Saint Francis of Assisi put it this way, "Preach the Gospel; use words if necessary." Posted by David del Valle | Posted at 05/08/2006 11:17 AM
The show can certainly be educational, tho not necessarily teaching you what you, or probably the producers, would assume to learn from a so-called business reality show. I always see great examples of 'Group Think,' work ethic principles, team dynamics, & argument structure. Posted by Mike Smith | Posted at 05/24/2006 6:52 AM