Personal vs. Professional Feelings

I was just involved in a misunderstanding on the Mailing Systems Technology blog. A couple of people took my comments about the dress code (or appearance code) as too harsh or insensitive. One person even said they were offended! I was looking at this subject from the outside as an observer of Mail Centers. I was not bringing any personal feelings into the mix. My personal views on tattoos and piercings are different from the way I know they are looked at in corporate America.

But I was reminded of something very, very important that those in the consulting game often encounter but just as often forget to take into account; personal feelings. One of the anonymous posters mentioned that one of their best workers has visible tattoos. I can't argue with that, nor would I want to. I am happy to hear when any Mail Center Manager says they have a "great worker".

Too often this is not the case, and I am very happy to hear those words. Too often as consultants we are asked to analyze a situation and make suggestions to fix them. Sometimes, in public forums, we choose to post a message with the same "impersonal" analysis, and it backfires. The bottom line is, whenever you are making suggestions that may impact personnel, it will also affect personal feelings, because it affects a person. I know I will from now on.

- Lincoln