Every once in a while you have to decide whether it's prudent to continue a battle or pull back and drop out of one. The word "battle" may be a bit strong, but it's all in how you see things.

I'd like to start out with a video, if I may; for once it's not one of mine:

https://youtu.be/IQlxLBqgFKc

I had this video on my blog over 13 years ago. I thought, and still feel, it was a moving and inspirational video. It's a short video with a great point, and I thought my visitors would enjoy it.

Even though it was innocuous in my eyes, it turned out to be controversial. I never thought anything about it, other than it made me feel good. However, it seemed that many people had a problem with it, that problem being that they wanted proof that the story was real. If you check out the comments on this video, which isn't the original posting, you'll still see a lot of the people who've responded are still asking about and disputing the veracity of the story.

What was funny is that I'd actually shared the video 18 months earlier without anyone saying anything, then suddenly it blew up. It generated the most comments this blog has ever had on any articles I've posted, and had it been within the last 5 years I'd have never deleted it. However, at the time I decided it was a story I didn't want to talk about anymore, so I deleted it; I think that was a major mistake, but there you are.


Do I look like a guy
who backs down?

I eventually wondered if some people might have thought I backed down because I thought I was wrong; nothing can be further from the truth. If I make a mistake, I'll own up to it and see what I can do to make things better. That's something I advocate around here; if you're an employer, or director, or someone with authority in a company, it's up to you to make a decision and live with that decision. If things go wrong, you have the opportunity to fix it, if it needs fixing. But to decide it needs fixing it takes time to do an assessment on the decision.

We're in an interesting period in this country. Many people are worried about what their employees might say, both inside and outside of the job world. It's unbelievable what some people have the nerve to say to someone else without remembering and realizing that there's probably someone recording their bad behavior. There's no forgiving things like that if they're going to impact your business, so in that regard I certainly understand why so many people end up losing their job.

Yet, if something's been created that has good intentions, yet there are those who don't believe the source or the story, is that the fault of the creator or those who share it? Is it their responsibility to research and confirm that the story is true? Have we gotten to the point where we're so jaded that we've unwilling to believe there are good stories in the world where the hero of the story wants to hold onto some of their privacy?

Probably; that's what's disappointing. As I keep coming across news stories about racism, homophobia, xenophobia and a host of other negative things in this country, and even though I have blogs and YouTube channels where I put my name, face and opinions on the line in public, doesn't mean I expect everyone to be like me. If you're trying to help, that's always a good thing. If you're spouting hate, you enflame people enough so they're going to eventually find you; herd mentality is a tough situation to hide from permanently.

When it's personal, that's one thing. When it concerns business, it's another thing. Whether it's about behavior, processes, technology or anything else that affects the business or the perception of the business, sometimes the person in charge has to decide that it's time to end something. Sometimes that thing can be modified; sometimes it has to be shut down. It's never an easy decision, but that's why being in a leadership position is hard, and why people who aspire to leadership positions need to be mentally ready to handle it.

In my case, I'm leaving Johnny The Bagger here and never removing it again. If it starts getting comments again, at least I'll know someone's paying attention. 🙂