{"id":435,"date":"2016-06-15T09:06:35","date_gmt":"2016-06-15T14:06:35","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/scorellis.com\/?p=435"},"modified":"2016-06-15T09:06:35","modified_gmt":"2016-06-15T14:06:35","slug":"how-to-stifle-creativity","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/scorellis.com\/?p=435","title":{"rendered":"How to Stifle Creativity"},"content":{"rendered":"
\n\t\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\"Fb-Button\"\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/a>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>
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This guide was NOT inspired by \u201cHow to Argue like an Idiot\u201d guide. THAT guide is designed to destroy thinking of any and all types. This one targets only creative thought.<\/p>\n

\n\u201cOne of the serious problems in planning the fight against American doctrine, is that the Americans do not read their manuals, nor do they feel any obligation to follow their doctrine…\u201d
\n– From a Soviet Junior Lt’s Notebook<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Why Discourage Creativity at Work?<\/strong> The new economy demands it. Global competition and world wide technological stagnancy in fields such as automotive and medicine have left many of us scrambling. If your business is a moneymaker, and profitable, STATUS QUO is the order of the day. DO NOT INNOVATE. STICK WITH WHAT WORKS! After all, things like toilet paper and umbrellas have not changed significantly in thousands of years, and they work great! If people really had a voracious appetite for ideas and innovation , they would change things themselves, not wait for you to do it!
\nPunish Failure.<\/strong> If anyone dares to try something risky or creative and fails, be sure to let them know you \u201ctold them so.\u201d Make them regret it for the rest of their days there, which should be few, because you need to use them to set an example. The biggest success stories result from the one guy that knew absolutely what he was doing and was a super genius without compare. Remember Edison and the light bulb?
\nEliminate Ambiguity.<\/strong> Something either works, or doesn\u2019t. You. Are. The. Boss. Stamp out uncertainty. If you think it won\u2019t work, it probably won\u2019t. Why try if failure is even a possibility? FEAR FAILURE! Straight A students didn\u2019t get straight \u2018A\u2019s because they were smart, they got them because they were terrified of failure!
\nInterrupt your Inferiors<\/strong> and pull them away from what they are doing without asking. Don’t ever let them build up enough steam to do anything worthwhile that might improve working conditions or threaten your job. \u00a0Periodically, even the best employees begin to work up come creative mind-flow which must be disrupted. Preferably, wait until you see them furiously intent on what they are doing. If they are working with power tools, so much the better because there is nothing better than when the \u201cDays Without An Incident\u201d sign reads \u201c0\u201d. Remember, productivity decreases by as much as 40% when people \u201cmultitask\u201d, and if people are 100% productive then that is less productivity for you to steal.
\nDon\u2019t Pay Attention to Others<\/strong> when they say things you don\u2019t understand. How dare someone have an idea in your magnificent presence? When someone comes to you with an idea, or you hear an idea, interrupt them with an idea of your own, yawn, grimace, frown, sneer, look at your email, look at your blackberry, start a side conversation, do ANYTHING but pay attention to them. And DON\u2019T make eye contact! It will only encourage their rambling. Be sure to write their idea down, though, so that you can claim it as your own later on.
\nCensor EVERYTHING.<\/strong> Stifle the creative juices by monitoring employee communications. Correct employees on everything from grammar to punctuation. If they send a funny email out to the entire company that is relevant, pertinent, and thought provoking, call them into your office and chew them out. \u201c\u2019Everyone\u2019 is for HR only!\u201d Make sure they understand that all of their ideas must come from you first. The added benefit to this is that if you run across an idea that actually has merit, you can take it.
\nSleep During Meetings. If you don\u2019t hear the idea happen, then it didn\u2019t. Long, unnecessary meetings, full of boring graphs and charts that berate and belittle every department, including your own, are fantastic sleep induction devices.
\nCreate Rules and Boundaries.<\/strong> People are supposed to toe the line, not cross it! Punish violators severely. Promote at least 50% of your staff to some sort of management responsibility so that the rules may be enforced most effectively. Post inspiration slogans on the wall like these time honored axioms:
\n\u2022 \u201cStay Within The Lines\u201d
\n\u2022 \u201cFollow Procedures!\u201d
\n\u2022 \u201cWatch the Bottom Line\u201d,
\n\u2022 \u201cQuarterly Profits are not everything, they are the ONLY thing!\u201d
\nRemember, a demoralized staff is a hard working, obedient staff.
\nDon\u2019t Ask Questions.<\/strong> People ask questions when they are interested in something. You can\u2019t maintain conformity and status quo if things are being questioned. Things are going just fine the way they are. Why mess with your perfect world?
\nHappiness is the Enemy.<\/strong> Foolishness, silliness, storytelling, imagination, etc\u2026 these are all things that distract from productivity. Nip them in the bud on sight. Begin your correction of the wayward employee with phrases like :
\n\u2022 \u201cWell THAT won\u2019t work.\u201d (or any variety of \u201cit can\u2019t be done\u201d)
\n\u2022 \u201cLet me tell you what we\u2019re not going to do\u2026\u201d
\n\u2022 \u201cBe Serious\u201d
\n\u2022 \u201cThink before you speak!\u201d
\n\u2022 \u201cSit down and shutup.\u201d
\n\u2022 Get back in your box?\u201d
\n\u2022 \u201cWho let you off your leash?\u201d
\n\u2022 \u201cWe don\u2019t do that here.\u201d
\n\u2022 \u201cWipe that smile off your face! If you are smiling, you aren\u2019t working!\u201d
\nProcedures Must be Followed.<\/strong> In the military, there is an entire command of officers and non-com\u2019s who exist for the sole purpose of approving any changes to procedures. It takes months, if not years, to change even a simple procedure. And look at how successful they are! In some countries, they are the ruling body! Establishing a rigid command structure will guarantee your corporation a place in the annals of history.<\/p>\n

Some day, I will release a book that is a tell-all about all the shitty bosses I have been plagued with in my life. \u00a0For now, though, this will have to do.<\/p>\n

P.S. If you have read this far and don’t realize it is satire, then you just might be a shitty boss. \u00a0Good luck with that.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

This guide was NOT inspired by \u201cHow to Argue like an Idiot\u201d guide. THAT guide is designed to destroy thinking of any and all types. This one targets only creative thought. \u201cOne of the serious problems in planning the fight … Continue reading →<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":112,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[25,10,23,17,7,14],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-435","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-health","category-myths-and-legends","category-public-commentary","category-relationship","category-technology","category-writing-and-speaking"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/scorellis.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/435","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/scorellis.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/scorellis.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/scorellis.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/112"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/scorellis.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=435"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/scorellis.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/435\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":436,"href":"https:\/\/scorellis.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/435\/revisions\/436"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/scorellis.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=435"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/scorellis.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=435"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/scorellis.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=435"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}