Showing posts with label Beachbody. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Beachbody. Show all posts
Thursday, March 25, 2010
Play the game and lie a little.
They say you should be "careful for what you ask for." Guess I didn't listen to that advice this week.
Let the record show that I was, today, terminated from my employment at Beachbody.
The reason they gave me for this forced departure was due to, "repeated insubordination towards my superiors." Well now there's a first for me. Have you ever known me not to be helpful or not try and prove that I can do something, or solve a problem placed before me? I mean, really?
Indulge me for a moment and allow me to recount, from my perspective, the incident that "broke the camel's back" if you will:
Ladies and Gentlemen, I give you ---- insubordination.
Now they claim that this is but one of many examples which lead to today's exit interview. They claim that there is a file an inch thick with reports of me being uncooperative and having a negative attitude. A few examples were trotted out as evidence, but I easily rebuffed them beyond a reasonable argument. The thing is, though, when you find yourself in a situation like I was today, you're no longer fighting for your job anymore. The decision to let me go had been made - the only option I had at that point was to depart gracefully.
And boy did I ever! (pat on the back, thank you very much)
So what is to be learned from this experience? Where did I go wrong with my Beachbody employment?
Well, for starters, I didn't ask for enough money at the beginning of my employment 3 years ago. I thought I could earn salary increases by doing a fantastic job at something that was going to easily be a cake walk for me. Now I see the error of that thought process, though it's not something to be dwelled upon today.
I actually gave up on this job a while ago. Really, I just stopped caring about it. I was doing a job for which I am vastly overqualified and unbelievably under compensated for. I'm nearly 34, for God sake, and was posting videos to the web like a damn YouTube account. Come on - I should be doing way more at this point in my career. It was clear to me, by this point, that I had no real chance of advancement at this company; despite my V.P.'s claims she was trying ever so hard to advance my career and that she was my "biggest advocate." As they say, actions speak louder than words. But that doesn't matter - people will say the things that paint themselves in the best light (hello, blog).
But where I could have really improved my career at Beachbody, and possibly have advanced successfully through these years, was by saying, "Yes" more often.
You see, the people above me, apparently, got frustrated when I pointed out limitations instead of simply agreeing with their ideas and spending valuable time investigating the things which I already knew not be possible. My superiors weren't looking for an 'expert' on the subject, they were looking for a 'Yes Man.'
That's the problem when you put people in charge of areas where they have no expertise - they don't know what to ask for. The problem is then compounded further when you have people who are experts, but are forced to work beneath people who aren't. This phenomenon also makes mentoring and advancement very difficult.
KC said it best the other day when he suggested that I should try lying at work more often. Sure, I may know the answer to the question being asked, and I may know what the outcome of any sort of investigation to the problem would yield. But it's only through the due diligence of trying to solve a problem and appearing interested in solving the unsolvable that people in power will be satisfied in your expertise. Really, it's just a way for them to maintain respectability after having asked such a stupid question in the first place. I would have been thought of as "a team player" had I gone out and 'pretended' to look for an answer that I already knew. My superiors would then feel good in themselves and their stupid request because, "well Sam (who's really smart and agreeable) couldn't find a solution after spending all that time looking."
Where I thought I was saving the company time and money by being an expert on the subject, turns out instead I was being uncooperative. Well fuck me!
Another way to look the situation: it's like when you had to show your work in 6th grade algebra. Sure, you can just glance at the problem and know the answer; but the answer isn't what the teacher is grading you on. He wants to see your work. He wants to see that you know how to come to the answer by going through the process. Again - it's about due diligence, no matter how mundane and pointless it may be.
Corporate America is really just one big game. It's played with people: some are smart and some are stupid. The stupid one's don't want to look stupid (though they're usually the one's with all the power and decision-making responsibility). If you (as a smart person) want to have power too, you've got to always work to make sure the stupid people above you appear smarter than they really are. Just not nearly as smart as you are, though.
It's all just a big game. And I've now been penalized for unsportsmanlike conduct and sent to the penalty box.
Let the record show that I was, today, terminated from my employment at Beachbody.
The reason they gave me for this forced departure was due to, "repeated insubordination towards my superiors." Well now there's a first for me. Have you ever known me not to be helpful or not try and prove that I can do something, or solve a problem placed before me? I mean, really?
Indulge me for a moment and allow me to recount, from my perspective, the incident that "broke the camel's back" if you will:
Earlier today I was asked to change the layout of one of the video players I manage. I was asked to re-position a headline, to which I said, "that level of customization is not possible with this particular player."
I was asked, "are you sure."
"I'm 83% sure, yea." (OK, I may be a wise-ass, but can little jokes like that really get a person fired?)
I was then told, in an equally wise-ass manor, to go check the other 17% that I wasn't sure of and come back with a definitive answer one way or the other. And, oh by the way, "we need your answer in the next 20 minutes." Everyone, no matter who you are, always has a boss who has unreasonable expectations.
I then simply said that, "I can't research this and provide a 100% definitive answer in the next 20 minutes. If you need an answer that quickly, the answer is going to half to be 'no'."
Ladies and Gentlemen, I give you ---- insubordination.Now they claim that this is but one of many examples which lead to today's exit interview. They claim that there is a file an inch thick with reports of me being uncooperative and having a negative attitude. A few examples were trotted out as evidence, but I easily rebuffed them beyond a reasonable argument. The thing is, though, when you find yourself in a situation like I was today, you're no longer fighting for your job anymore. The decision to let me go had been made - the only option I had at that point was to depart gracefully.
And boy did I ever! (pat on the back, thank you very much)
So what is to be learned from this experience? Where did I go wrong with my Beachbody employment?
Well, for starters, I didn't ask for enough money at the beginning of my employment 3 years ago. I thought I could earn salary increases by doing a fantastic job at something that was going to easily be a cake walk for me. Now I see the error of that thought process, though it's not something to be dwelled upon today.
I actually gave up on this job a while ago. Really, I just stopped caring about it. I was doing a job for which I am vastly overqualified and unbelievably under compensated for. I'm nearly 34, for God sake, and was posting videos to the web like a damn YouTube account. Come on - I should be doing way more at this point in my career. It was clear to me, by this point, that I had no real chance of advancement at this company; despite my V.P.'s claims she was trying ever so hard to advance my career and that she was my "biggest advocate." As they say, actions speak louder than words. But that doesn't matter - people will say the things that paint themselves in the best light (hello, blog).
But where I could have really improved my career at Beachbody, and possibly have advanced successfully through these years, was by saying, "Yes" more often.
You see, the people above me, apparently, got frustrated when I pointed out limitations instead of simply agreeing with their ideas and spending valuable time investigating the things which I already knew not be possible. My superiors weren't looking for an 'expert' on the subject, they were looking for a 'Yes Man.'
That's the problem when you put people in charge of areas where they have no expertise - they don't know what to ask for. The problem is then compounded further when you have people who are experts, but are forced to work beneath people who aren't. This phenomenon also makes mentoring and advancement very difficult.
KC said it best the other day when he suggested that I should try lying at work more often. Sure, I may know the answer to the question being asked, and I may know what the outcome of any sort of investigation to the problem would yield. But it's only through the due diligence of trying to solve a problem and appearing interested in solving the unsolvable that people in power will be satisfied in your expertise. Really, it's just a way for them to maintain respectability after having asked such a stupid question in the first place. I would have been thought of as "a team player" had I gone out and 'pretended' to look for an answer that I already knew. My superiors would then feel good in themselves and their stupid request because, "well Sam (who's really smart and agreeable) couldn't find a solution after spending all that time looking."
Where I thought I was saving the company time and money by being an expert on the subject, turns out instead I was being uncooperative. Well fuck me!
Another way to look the situation: it's like when you had to show your work in 6th grade algebra. Sure, you can just glance at the problem and know the answer; but the answer isn't what the teacher is grading you on. He wants to see your work. He wants to see that you know how to come to the answer by going through the process. Again - it's about due diligence, no matter how mundane and pointless it may be.
Corporate America is really just one big game. It's played with people: some are smart and some are stupid. The stupid one's don't want to look stupid (though they're usually the one's with all the power and decision-making responsibility). If you (as a smart person) want to have power too, you've got to always work to make sure the stupid people above you appear smarter than they really are. Just not nearly as smart as you are, though.
It's all just a big game. And I've now been penalized for unsportsmanlike conduct and sent to the penalty box.
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Tuesday, November 3, 2009
What's Your Why?
If you've ever worked in marketing, especially multi-level marketing, you know that they often use really cheesy catch-phrases to motivate the sales force. And the Execs. at these places always have those 'inspirational' framed posters in their office with generic skylines accompanied by motivation words like "Perseverance" or "Achievement." Well at Team Beachbody we are no different (or no better, however you look at it).
Earlier this year for our annual summit, we asked the question, "What's your Why?" as in, "What motivates you to be a Team Beachbody Independent Sales Rep (a Coach)? The question was asked to each of the staff employees as well. Our answers were posted at our desks. You would not believe the bullshit answers people were coming up with. Crap like, "My dream is to impact the world and help people achieve their health and fitness goals." Be honest people, you should have just wrote, "I know the CEO is going to read this so I'm going to stay what I think he want's to hear."
I had many smart-ass answers to the question "Why." Answers like "I come to work because the mortgage doesn't pay itself." They didn't like that one.
After a couple of failed submissions both parties agreed on the less douchebaggery, "I want to live credit card free." This was a true statement; I DID want to live credit card free. I just wanted to be paid a salary which would leave me enough extra to pay down the cards instead of opting for bankruptcy. Guess it doesn't matter how you get there, hu?
Problem now is, I have no more Why - no reason to stay here at Beachbody. I mean, yea, they are still giving me money, not nearly enough of course. But that's all I seem to be getting out of this place. I still have yet to find an actual career here, and I've yet to see any growth with my position. Quite the opposite, in fact.
Earlier last week I was informed that I now report to the Director of Production instead of the VP of Production. It's an attempt to create a more flat-level reporting structure. What you need to understand here, dear reader, is that I've always reported to a VP. And the Director of Production, funny and sweet gal that she is, doesn't know fuck shit about being a Director of Production. And she knows even less about what I do for the company. This is her first real job (she's an 40y/o actor so she's kinda' green to "the corporate life").
Then a glimmer of hope was once again dangled in front of my face; a Development Producer role may be created and I might be a good fit for it, according to the VP. I followed up with an enthusiastic email outlining why I would be a great fit for that position, how my strengths would play well in the position, and suggested some next steps we should take to move forward. My attempt was simply blown off and a pitch meeting was held earlier today without me. Message received.
By now you're probably thinking that today's blog entry is just a way for me to bitch more about my job and complain about how I'm being treated at my work. Not so!.... (OK, maybe just a little.)
What I came to realize is that I no longer have any motivation to excel at this company. And what's worse, I no longer see any hope for advancement. I've tried to come up with new reasons to stay and new options for growth but somehow they just haven't come to pass. Every time I approach a new job opportunity I am derailed with some lame excuse. And, quite frankly, I'm not invested enough to keep trying over-and-over.
I realize that Beachbody has become a psychological crutch for me. Being that we are in the largest opportunistic and capitalist society in the world during a recession that has seen unusually high unemployment rates, simply having a job can often seem like more than it really is. People tell me all the time that I'm lucky to even have a job. They say it's tough out there and I should stay put and not rock-the-boat. But that type of attitude never advanced anyone's career or soul.
Life is full of risk and rewards. You never get the latter without assuming the former. Being the logical one I am, I have never been one to assume much risk. I will do calculated risks, but rarely will engage in the "throw caution to the wind" risk. However, THIS is the time for such a plan. No other moment will ever come again in my life to make a truly significant change. I've got no major responsibilities which means I have much less to loose. So I half to ask myself, "WHY NOT?"
Earlier this year for our annual summit, we asked the question, "What's your Why?" as in, "What motivates you to be a Team Beachbody Independent Sales Rep (a Coach)? The question was asked to each of the staff employees as well. Our answers were posted at our desks. You would not believe the bullshit answers people were coming up with. Crap like, "My dream is to impact the world and help people achieve their health and fitness goals." Be honest people, you should have just wrote, "I know the CEO is going to read this so I'm going to stay what I think he want's to hear."
I had many smart-ass answers to the question "Why." Answers like "I come to work because the mortgage doesn't pay itself." They didn't like that one.
Problem now is, I have no more Why - no reason to stay here at Beachbody. I mean, yea, they are still giving me money, not nearly enough of course. But that's all I seem to be getting out of this place. I still have yet to find an actual career here, and I've yet to see any growth with my position. Quite the opposite, in fact.
Earlier last week I was informed that I now report to the Director of Production instead of the VP of Production. It's an attempt to create a more flat-level reporting structure. What you need to understand here, dear reader, is that I've always reported to a VP. And the Director of Production, funny and sweet gal that she is, doesn't know fuck shit about being a Director of Production. And she knows even less about what I do for the company. This is her first real job (she's an 40y/o actor so she's kinda' green to "the corporate life").
Then a glimmer of hope was once again dangled in front of my face; a Development Producer role may be created and I might be a good fit for it, according to the VP. I followed up with an enthusiastic email outlining why I would be a great fit for that position, how my strengths would play well in the position, and suggested some next steps we should take to move forward. My attempt was simply blown off and a pitch meeting was held earlier today without me. Message received.
By now you're probably thinking that today's blog entry is just a way for me to bitch more about my job and complain about how I'm being treated at my work. Not so!.... (OK, maybe just a little.)
What I came to realize is that I no longer have any motivation to excel at this company. And what's worse, I no longer see any hope for advancement. I've tried to come up with new reasons to stay and new options for growth but somehow they just haven't come to pass. Every time I approach a new job opportunity I am derailed with some lame excuse. And, quite frankly, I'm not invested enough to keep trying over-and-over.
I realize that Beachbody has become a psychological crutch for me. Being that we are in the largest opportunistic and capitalist society in the world during a recession that has seen unusually high unemployment rates, simply having a job can often seem like more than it really is. People tell me all the time that I'm lucky to even have a job. They say it's tough out there and I should stay put and not rock-the-boat. But that type of attitude never advanced anyone's career or soul.
Life is full of risk and rewards. You never get the latter without assuming the former. Being the logical one I am, I have never been one to assume much risk. I will do calculated risks, but rarely will engage in the "throw caution to the wind" risk. However, THIS is the time for such a plan. No other moment will ever come again in my life to make a truly significant change. I've got no major responsibilities which means I have much less to loose. So I half to ask myself, "WHY NOT?"
Sunday, August 9, 2009
Get your ass (and wallet) thin at Beachbody | part 3
Part 3: "Today's plan. aka: The last ditch effort"
I think Brightcove was the best thing for me. When we migrated from Feedroom to the Brightcove platform a year ago I had no idea what I would be learning. Scott didn't really either but he knew the platform was powerful and would move the company in a positive direction. And he knew that by making me the local expert on the technology it would entrench me in Beachbody and give me an advantage, not to mention job security.
So today I own the Brightcove relationship and all things video distribution at Beachbody. Nobody else knows how to program players or fully understands their capabilities. The thing of it is, nobody thinks of video distribution as "video distribution." It's more simplistic like just some little players on a page.
I think that may be where I'm going wrong. I do my job and keep the magic to myself. I've tried to let others know that what I accomplish is pretty fuckin' cool but they don't seem to get it. So to them, it's no big deal. I couldn't help but wonder if they know how valuable I am or if they keep me around because I get the job done without a large cost.
Alright, the plan. So I am attempting to make digital video distribution a larger component of the Beachbody business. And I'm attempting to jump ship to the Web department where I should get more cash for what I do and have a clearer growth path.
I've tried this once before. Bill Townsend, the previous VP of Online was very receptive to me joining his team. He saw the value in what I did and knew how I could help his objectives. But then he had to go and get a brain tumor or something. My thoughts are with you Bill. I feel selfish bitching about my life in a blog right now when someone has real problems to deal with.
This week we got a new VP of Online, Hope. Everyone around the office is saying, "we've got Hope now. Maybe she can fix things." That's a lot to ask of one woman. But perhaps she can start with something small like my salary. You see, two months ago the new 'Social Media Manager' position was posted. I jumped at the opportunity.
But much like Burger King, I want it my way. I'm not going in for the Social Media Manager job. I don't see the long-term stability and security in that position. Plus, I've worked too hard in video distribution to just hand it over. So I'm proposing that we merge the two positions into one. I think it's brilliant, I've been told it's arrogant.
So far I have written up a new job description (although I'm still deciding on what I want my title to be), written up a business proposal, an executive summary, a new-job guideline for measurement, and researched comparable salaries. Now all I half to do is charm Hope, and negotiate the deal. Wish me luck.
Saturday, August 8, 2009
Get your ass (and wallet) thin at Beachbody | part 2
Part 2: "Paying my dues"
I will freely admit that my effort level at Beachbody has not always been consistent. There were periods of time where I worked my ass off - staying late (really late in the early days), taking on extra responsibilities (see booking travel & training), and being a real team-player (ask me about the shrubbery story sometime).
But then there were those times when, quite frankly my dear, I didn't give a fuck. Those times were apparent. Sure I still went into the office and did my work and got things done. But Scott knew I was costing. Perhaps I'm a victim of my own good work-ethic sometimes. hummm?
However, while I'm eating my fair share of Humble Pie here, I did make a strong effort to turn Beachbody into a real job. You must remember, nobody could ever really tell me what my job title meant. And because I usually ended up doing a little bit of everything, I found it difficult to hone in on a specialty. I incorrectly thought that if I was good at a little bit of everything I would be a more valuable asset to the company and justly rewarded. Come to find out it's better to be an expert at one thing. That's how you get promoted.
And as it always does, time marches on and I find myself still at the job 29 months after I started. Sure I got a bump up to the $55k that I thought I deserved when I started; but when I got that increase (a year ago now) I thought I had exceeded that pay level already. And if I thought I knew more then - whoow, Baby do I know some shit now!
I've grown from a kid who captures and labels tapes to the online video distributor for all of the company's internet brands. Where I once managed three external hard drives, I now oversee nearly 1,000 individual online video pieces which are played millions of times a month. I use to be lost and unsure of myself in a new department but today I am the go-to guy who has the answers and knows how to get things done. I have grown and evolved while my official title and salary have remained stagnant. And all this while much growth is happening all around me. New people are getting hired at ridiculous salaries. People are getting promoted for doing nothing - and they still don't know how to work simple things like PowerPoint.
The changes don't stop there either. Scott hasn't been with the company since March of this year - we now have Natalie. Will Culp moved out of Production and then moved out of the company to pursue his education. Brandon is still around but it's hard to notice sometimes. He's turned into a character of corporate complacency hiding in his office, saying 'yes' to any ridiculous request from Natalie, and coming to the office in bland sweaters in the August heat. He and I are the only remaining members of the original hire. We're in a great new office and our staff has exploded to include four V.P.s
So with all this change, why haven't I progressed? Why do people still come to me looking for photos of people? Why do I half to baby-sit a Producer during a live event because she stresses everyone under her out when the little things go wrong? How can the company be making $300mm this year and every time I ask for a raise I'm told, "we are on a salary freeze right now." My friends have all told me to get the hell out of there and find something better - and I've looked. But I have a plan.
Get your ass (and wallet) thin at Beachbody | part 1
Part 1: "I woke up one day and was working for a fitness company"
February 9, 2007 was the day I was laid off from Technicolor. I had worked there for 4-years. They were having their own restructuring issues and the company was sending staff off with week-ass severance packages in groups of 15 to 30 at-a-time. I got caught in round three along with the other two guys from my department.
Having been laid off once before from Duplitech, I knew I had to get a job; and with a looming mortgage over my head I had to do it fast!
Enter Beachbody. Well, rather Million Dollar Body, the experimental subsidiary division of the more "successful" Beachbody. I say "successful" because I had reservations about this company from before I stepped in the door for my first interview. My good friend Drew got me the interview but it was his long-time boyfriend, Brian, who had himself been laid off from Beachbody in 2004/'05 when the company was bleeding money and needed to trim the fat. Having just been a victim of of the same corporate restructuring fate, I was weary of any company that couldn't better forecast it's future successes and staffing needs.
I interviewed with a cute kid named Brandon (who I would later learn, to my horror, was only 24) and a hyper "funny-man" named Scott, for a new position in the new Production Department, Digital Asset Manager. There was no job description for Digital Asset Manager and the HR rep couldn't tell me what I would be doing. In fact Scott didn't fully know what I would be doing in the position other than keeping the editors stocked with footage for the shows that were in development. You see, there was no organization or process yet. So I was going in to set up a digital library. Piece of cake.
The offer came in less than what I left Technicolor at. And when I pointed this out it seemed as though I was putting Scott out. He begrudgingly upped his offer to $50k to match my last position. Now, realize, I knew I should have been making $55k at that point in my career but it was difficult to get the cheep-ass infomercial company up to $50, and I wasn't planning on staying there more than 3-months until I found something better.
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