Billions With Zero Knowledge - Austin Hill, Entrepreneur & Angel Investor

Guy Kawasaki has a great review of the soon to be released book The No Asshole Rule: Building a Civilized Workplace and Surviving One That Isn’t by Robert Sutton.

(I don’t plan to use profanity often in my writing - but the word really does capture the meaning in a way the no other word does)

The book is on my wishlist.

I’ve worked for assholes, worked with assholes, employed assholes (often too long), fired assholes (never fast enough) and I’ve been an asshole myself at times (in fact more times then I’m proud of).

Thankfully being an asshole is not a terminal condition. Guy’s post offers the following tips on not being an asshole.

How To Avoid Being an Asshole

The first $64,000 question is, “How does one avoid being an asshole?” No big surprise, but I’ve compiled a top-ten list to summarize what Sutton says:

1. Face your past. The past is a very good predictor of future behavior. For example, were you a bully in school? If your parents and siblings were assholes, you may have caught the disease. Knowing that you’re an asshole is first step towards change.
2. Do not make people feel oppressed, humiliated, de-energized, or belittled. If you find yourself having these effects, it’s time to change your behavior no matter what you think of yourself.
3. Do not mistreat people who are less powerful than you. One of the sure signs of an asshole is treating people like clerks, flight attendants, and waiters in a degrading manner.
4. Resist assholeholics from the start. The easiest time to avoid becoming an asshole is at the very beginning. Don’t think that you can do “what you have to” to fit in and can change later. It won’t happen.
5. Walk away and stay away. Don’t be afraid to leave a bad situation. It’s unlikely you’ll change the assholes into good people; it’s much more likely that you’ll descend to their level.
6. View acting like an asshole as a communicable disease. If you have any sense of decency, when you’re sick, you avoid contact to prevent spreading the disease. So if you act like an asshole, you’re not just impacting yourself; you’re also teaching other people that it’s okay to be an asshole.
7. Focus on win-win. Children (young and old) think that the world is a zero-sum game. If another kid is playing with the fire truck, you can’t. As people get older they should realize that life doesn’t have to be a win-lose proposition–unless, that is, you’re an asshole.
8. Focus on ways you are no better or even worse than others. Thinking that you’re smarter, faster, better looking, funnier, whatever than others turns people into assholes. Thinking that you’re no better or even worse keeps you humble.
9. Focus on ways you are similar to people, not different. If you concentrate on how you and others have similar goals, desires, and passions, you’re bound to be less of an asshole. How can you treat people that are similar to you with disdain?
10. Tell yourself, “I have enough stuff (money, toys, friends, cars, whatever).” Discontentment and envy is a major factor in becoming an asshole. If you’re happy, there’s no reason to stomp on others.

The best book on leadership I’ve read recently is Starfish and the Spider by Ori Brafman and Rod Beckstorm. They describe the power of decentralized leadership. They have some great examples of leaders who are not managers, but have followers.

I can’t think of a time in business when assholes are needed less. As the cost and technical ease of creating your own business or becoming self employed drops - creative people have incredible choices about where they choose to spend their days.

I work continually to develop as a leader since my success has always been due to the teams that have followed me. For those who’ve supported me when I was an asshole - thanks. You’ll be happy to know I think I’m acting like less of an asshole recently