Our “No Asshole” Rule (2014)
adventur.es
Our “No Asshole” Rule (2014)
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Re: Our “No Asshole” Rule (2014)
#2Ehhh.
I work at a company that has a similar policy. What ends up happening is:
1) Everyone becomes conflict-averse for fear of looking like an asshole, so bad ideas often go unchecked
2) People find other ways to be assholes when they want to be, they're just passive-aggressive about it instead
3) It becomes a conversation-terminating cliche. Want to stifle someone disagreeing with you? Accuse them of phrasing something in a way that might be considered remotely hostile.
I'm not saying it's a bad policy, but I don't think it necessarily solves much. It trades one set of problems for another.
What you really want is a "no assholes whose behavior interferes with business," which doesn't really roll of the tongue quite as nicely I suppose.
Re: Our “No Asshole” Rule (2014)
#3FYI, Professor Sutton from Stanford wrote a book about this very same idea: https://www.amazon.com/Asshole-Rule-Civilized-Workplace-Surv...
I didn't know about Sutton's book at the time, but we used the same rule when raising our seed round. We rejected more than one VC firm based on this rule.
Re: Our “No Asshole” Rule (2014)
#4Ironically while reading this I got the distinct impression that the writer was a manipulative asshole.
Re: Our “No Asshole” Rule (2014)
#5Ehhh. I work at a company that has a similar policy. What ends up happening is: 1) Everyone becomes conflict-averse for fear of looking like an asshole, so bad ideas often go unchecked 2) People find other ways to be assholes when they want to be, they're just passive-aggressive about it instead 3) It becomes a conversation-terminating cliche. Want to stifle someone disagreeing with you? Accuse them of phrasing somet…
Amen. I interviewed with a company that touted a "No Jerks Policy". Both the HR recruiter and the CEO bragged to me about how they have and will fire "jerks" on the spot. I ran far away from that job after the interview.
Re: Our “No Asshole” Rule (2014)
#6Ironically while reading this I got the distinct impression that the writer was a manipulative asshole.
How did you get that impression?
Re: Our “No Asshole” Rule (2014)
#7Wait, isn't refusing clients/opportunities/etc. because of "asshole-ness" in its own right also an asshole move? I mean sure you have good intentions, but isn't "no I'm not letting you into my lane cause your an asshole" kind of a hippicritical thing to say?
Re: Our “No Asshole” Rule (2014)
#8Ehhh. I work at a company that has a similar policy. What ends up happening is: 1) Everyone becomes conflict-averse for fear of looking like an asshole, so bad ideas often go unchecked 2) People find other ways to be assholes when they want to be, they're just passive-aggressive about it instead 3) It becomes a conversation-terminating cliche. Want to stifle someone disagreeing with you? Accuse them of phrasing somet…
I agree. I think the lesson I've learned is that selfish people will just use your "values" as political weapons for self-advancement, no matter what the value is, even if it's "selflessness."
This shouldn't be surprising; the idea that a person would fundamentally reshape their whole personality and outlook on life because some dude in an office ("boss") put it on a piece of paper on the wall (made it a "value") seems far-fetched.
That said, it sounds like "politics" falls into their "asshole" category, so perhaps they will find a way. So long as the politicians don't learn to hide their politics...
Re: Our “No Asshole” Rule (2014)
#9Ironically while reading this I got the distinct impression that the writer was a manipulative asshole.
How did you get that impression?
I don't think he's a manipulative arsehole, but it does seem very aggressive and judgemental to use the term arseholes. Normally it's only arseholes who tend to call other people arseholes, after all :-)
Re: Our “No Asshole” Rule (2014)
#10Earlier quoted context omitted.
How did you get that impression?
I don't think he's a manipulative arsehole, but it does seem very aggressive and judgemental to use the term arseholes. Normally it's only arseholes who tend to call other people arseholes, after all :-)
Guilty as charged. :)