Have you ever wondered how most politicians are made? Where do they come from? They definitely seem to come from a different dimension than the rest of us. I think one thing is certain: they are different from the average quality folk. In fact, good quality professionals are the antithesis of most politicians. Explore with me, if you will, the differences between these two species of individuals that unfortunately exist with disproportionate power in this world.
A politician’s best traits
My first close encounter with a politician was at my college graduation, where President George Bush Sr. gave the commencement speech. I was so moved by him and his speech that it perhaps left in me some taste for politics. When he shook my hand, I was so proud. Of course, no picture exists of that moment except the one in my mind. But it will always be there. A president shaking my hand!
It would be years before I was able to understand U.S. politics, its pundits, and what you hear in the news about politics. Now that I do understand, my outlook has changed so much. No more visions of sugar plums. My picture-perfect moment is not so perfect anymore. How do they manage to stay in the limelight for so long? From any media marketing perspective, that is impressive. I have been writing articles in my quality-related blog for a while now, and I have not managed to attract as much attention as the average politician.
I have come to the conclusion that politicians have traits considered undesirable by some. I’m good, I work hard, I follow the rules, I’m cautious. Great, but that doesn’t buy me press time, PR time, publicity, free travel, great benefits or even a membership to a gym. So I accept that I, like other good quality professionals, lack the traits that politicians possess. And although I’m not so sure anybody wants to have them, here is my short list of the best traits I believe a politician must have:
- Talks the Talk
- “Born” Successful
- Has Guts and Audacity
- Endures Personal Hardship
- Has Correction Plans
I have decided in this article to compare each of these politician’s best traits with the traits of good quality professionals. I give examples of how each demonstrates these traits and what makes them so different.
Talk the Talk
There is absolutely no doubt in my mind about a politician’s best trait. All politicians know how to talk. They may not know how to walk the talk, but without a doubt they can talk the talk. A good politician can make bad news look good and make good news look bad, depending on what side of the field they’re on. Even when they’re in the midst of trouble, a good politician can talk their way around it and somehow make it look as if we have somewhat contributed to the problem and they’re the victim. They actually make us feel indefensible and so much in need of them. Ah, those words, those gestures, those phrases. Politicians know what to say and when to say it, and they also know how to take back what they said and when to add flair to their talk. If I could only speak that well.
Don’t forget too, that politicians talk based on information somebody else provides. So whether they know the facts or evidence about a situation, they can talk and argue about it even if they have not seen it with their own eyes. Remember George W. Bush and the weapons of mass destruction? Just think how politicians are able to convince us that something is true. And even after they are caught presenting only their version of the truth, they still manage to enlighten us with all-new, masterful statements. Remember that President Obama’s “Shovel-ready” was not as shovel-ready as expected. Now that’s a powerful statement. Politicians’ talk is powerful, and they wield that power. What about the right wing, saying, “Osama Bin Laden was caught because of enhanced interrogation techniques.” Talk about putting a third dimension to a totally square two-dimensional drawing. For now, let’s just say politicians are talk masters. Really good at talking, regardless of whether they practice or follow their own talk and whether or not if what they say has any basis in fact.
In contrast this, the good quality professional knows better: “In God we trust, all others must bring data.” Good quality professionals base their statements on facts or results that they typically gather on their own, with proven tools. They couldn’t make a negative report look good even if they tried. In fact, the good quality professional has been put in the position of doing the dirty work that nobody else wants to do, which is to show the way to improvement even if it means exposing all the cracks and faults of their organization.
Most quality professionals cannot wordsmith their own results. Whether the results are good or bad, they just have to tell it like it is. This lack of ability to talk their way around bad news has actually propelled the movement of root cause analysis techniques, to improve situations rather than try to make bad things look good. And good quality professionals actually walk the talk, and don’t worry about whether they can actually talk. They would not be called good quality people if they couldn’t lead by example. Good housekeeping starts with them, good environmental practices start with them, and following procedures starts with them. They can’t pass the monkey to anybody else because, in a sense, they are the monkey—not the problem, but the one who spotted it. They do their job with dignity, even if talk is not their forte. They have been hired to do one job, and that is to maintain and improve the quality of their operations, and they do that with their actions, not just their words.
Politicians are born successful
I hold the belief that most politicians did not really have great experience in large corporations or worked in the private sector for long. Most dove onto politics either because they studied law, their family was in politics or because somehow their first job landed them there. They were born with that knack and they took the bull by the horn and ran with it, and became the elected official, congressman, or senator they are now. What an accomplishment. Somebody with a relatively limited track record becomes a politician and comes to save Americans. Yahoo! But it’s logical; they were born to do that job, right?
Once they achieve politician status in the House or the Senate, politicians enjoy so many benefits. And rightfully so… as they know. They have a better health care plan than most of us. They have a better pension plan than most of us. They get a nice gym where they can exercise… and take pictures of themselves, too. They get to travel for free and attend conferences they think will help our country. They get nice offices in nice locations, all with the taxpayer money.
Last year when our company bought our first office, I experienced a phase in my career that I had not experienced before, that of owning an office. We carefully looked for it and found the best bargain we could get. We outfitted it so conservatively, watching every dollar. It was so nerve-wracking to gamble this way with our money. What if the business did not succeed? What if nobody else called our business? But thank God our politicians don’t have to think about that. They play with our money, not theirs, so they don’t have to worry themselves sick about it. They can find the best office, in the best location, and get the best furniture. We are lucky these people that don’t fit into other areas of work that serve the public. Really.
Quality professionals are not so lucky and not so naturally successful. They are successful because they work hard at it and are always learning new ways to improve themselves and their organizations. Even if their family dealt in quality, they cannot get a quality job unless they have the credentials. Even if their first job was in quality, they cannot move up unless they have the experience. And whether they studied engineering or business, they cannot get the job unless they show knowledge and results. They are not voted in, but rather are carefully selected. They are forced to take continuing studies seriously and attain certifications that require them to adhere to high standards, which is practically another job in itself.
Quality people work hard for their companies and, most of the time, take the heat when a problem occurs. They are rarely patted on the back if a major efficiency problem is solved. Quality workers are humble, knowing their job is to improve operations without their becoming a part of the limelight. Their health plan and pension plan is the same as anybody else’s in the organization. Their offices are like everyone else’s, or left in limbo between the front offices and the production floor. But they don’t care. They are there to do the job, not to have special privileges. That’s why they are called good quality professionals.
Politicians have guts
You have to agree that most politicians do things most people wouldn’t dare to do. Think about it. Run to Argentina for a fun weekend, leaving their post without telling anyone? Have sex in the Oval Office? Openly flirt with nice young interns? Have sex with the maid or an assistant and have a child with her? It takes a lot of guts to do that while you’re on the job. Never mind that you could be impeached, fired, jailed or ridiculed. They have the guts to do it anyway. They are also creative, going through great efforts to hide this behavior, unreal expenses, and other such excesses. Not only gutsy, but pretty clever if you ask me.
In my own career, I once caused a mistake to occur in one area of a firm’s operations. I was quickly put back on track, after several talks and walks to the manager and the human resources department. I did not shift the blame to someone else. Rather, I took the blame and vowed never to create that problem again. Since then, I follow procedures and am careful when a potential problem looms near, regardless of where I’m working.
But great politicians have no such fear. They are just gutsy and defiant. When asked about something they did wrong, they put into practice their No. 1 trait, which is talk good, put a good spin on something bad, and convince people it wasn’t their fault. “A hacker hacked into my Twitter account.” Come on, you’ve got to admit, that’s clever. “I was climbing in the Andes in Argentina, not the Appalachians.” Andes… Argentina… Appalachians… So many “A”s it is so confusing. And of course, when all else fails, “That’s a media conspiracy.”
Good quality people are the opposite; they know that if things don’t work well, their job is on the line. They would never dare go behind somebody‘s back or against their policies. They will walk through fire to do the right thing for their firm or customer. Good quality professionals will never leave their job just as a new trial run is about to happen or when a new process is about to take place. They know they are needed, and they will take the responsibility to make things work. Good quality people work with operations to improve the quality of their products or services, and never leave them hanging. Good quality people stand by their quality policy and mean what they say. They may not be as gutsy as to want to throw themselves onto the fire, but they are often thrown into them… and then called to put them out.
Politicians endure personal hardships
To be a politician, you must leave your family and hometown and go to this place of solitude called Washington. To those from outside the DC area, there is nothing in Washington that resembles home, and politicians hate that. They leave their families and constituents for a lonely life where they do not feel at home.
In Washington, politicians get free gas and free passes to many places. This must cause great anxiety for them, as they are used to being providers. Politicians always work into the wee hours to come up with excellent ideas on how to spend our money. They also only have about 100 days of vacation a year—I’m sorry—recess—to go see their families. Many choose not to do that in order to spend more time in their apartments in Washington. They are forced to work with young, inexperienced people who greatly admire them. We are so thankful that they go through great lengths to serve us, that we pay for their room and board and even travel expenses on top of their salaries. Come on, it’s the least we can do! They have this great job of doing our thinking for us. Certainly we can oblige them a few perks.
In contrast, the quality professional is usually the underdog. When things go right, somebody else usually has something to do with it. When something goes wrong, the quality person is considered to have had something to do with it, whether they did or not. The quality worker usually has to come back to their family every night, where they are asked to contribute and be part of the family and do household chores. The good quality worker is usually the one that carries bad news when a process or product is bad, and reports it with integrity. They don’t get any more privileges than anybody else in the office. That’s because they usually just mind their own business and are not looking to be in the limelight.
Politicians are masters of correction plans
Every new politician who comes to Washington has something to correct. Whether they have a three-year plan, a five-year plan, a long-term strategic correction plan or no plan at all, they come in and magically have a solution to correct what was there. Obama had a healthcare plan to solve the healthcare problem. Not sure if it will work or not, but he had a plan. Mitt Romney has a healthcare plan, too.
In quality management, we know problems need to be understood before you can even try to correct them. Better yet, you need to correct the underlying causes of the problem so you can really solve the problem at its root. But politicians are also master magicians. They know what is needed to correct problems, without even understanding the problem well. Look at traffic in major cities like Houston. The solution was to add more lanes to the freeways and maybe, just maybe, there wouldn’t be any traffic. Wrong. The traffic is still there. What about the millions paid for electric train programs that never made it? But you can’t blame them for trying.
Other good examples of politicians just having a correction plan is the housing bust. What happens when people buy lots of houses with money they don’t have? What happens when banks loan a lot of money to people who cannot afford to pay it back? The politicians of course came up with a plan so that people will have money to pay for their homes and banks will have more money to loan. That’s a correction for you.
And what about the car companies who were in the red because they offered more benefits to their employees than money collected from sales? Wow, did the politicians have a solution for that. Clever one, too. Bail out the banks and the car companies.
You know, I wish I could have had that sense of security when I bought my little office. I mean, knowing that the politicians will save me in case my cash flow is in the red by the millions would be a great feeling. And if this does not offer enough proof that they like to correct problems, think about the debt ceiling. What could be the best solution to our government spending out of control and beyond the budget? You got it, raise the budget ceiling. Bingo — problem solved.
I’m so happy they have these great corrections to problems. Makes people feel more secure when those problems recur.
In contrast to that, good quality professionals have been taught that surface correction is bad, that it only solves the low-hanging fruit of a problem that has deep roots. So when something goes bad, rather than putting their effort into making it look good, they go back to finding the causes of the problem. They call it root cause analysis and corrective action.
Think of it as a plant that’s losing its leaves. The good quality professional will look at the soil and the roots and see if the plant needs food, nutrients or water. Give a problem to the good quality person and you will see that they will not stop until the root of the problem is found. If your problem is about traffic, they probably will tell you that adding more lanes will be like putting more quality inspectors at the end of the production line. It just doesn’t work. Quality cannot be put in, rather it has to be built into how a system operates.
After all this, what’s is a quality professional to do?
Don’t despair, quality amigo! Good times are here and we know you are there on the trenches getting it all sorted out. Luckily, things have changed. Many industries have finally realized that having a quality professional in their team is key, so this profession is a hot commodity nowadays, at least in our neck of the woods. So if you are out there trying to decide whether to go for politics or become a quality professional, then think about it. Do you like to walk the walk? Do you work hard to improve yourself and your organization? Can you solve problems from the bottom up? Can you do all these things, all without seeking to be in the limelight? If your answer is yes, then you are meant to be a quality professional, and a fine one at that.
This article was published by Quality Digest on 11/6/2012.
