There is a particular phrase I hear pretty frequently that just drives me nuts. “Because we’ve always done it that way.” That makes me want to rip my hair out. What makes people think that just because something has always been done a certain way that is must continue being done that way?

Ok, in the real world (at least these days) that isn’t quite the case but it seems that every place i’ve ever worked has always had that mindset. Would you find it very surprising if I told you most of the employees were old? Yeah, I wasn’t all that shocked either. :twisted: Old people are really stuck in their ways! I can forgive that though. The ones I can’t forgive are the ones who are young or who choose to work in an environment that is ever changing, then refuse to change with it. Bahhhh!!!! :evil:

Times are changing people and so are the ways that things are done and thought about. Just because you did it for 10+ years doesn’t mean it still works. If it does still work then it doesn’t mean it still works well. There is another common phrase, “If it isn’t broken, don’t fix it.” That is the mentality of a second rate employee, underachiever, lazy-ass and the mentality of the past.

If it isn’t broken, great. Does it work better than any other option? Does it work faster than any other option? If it’s been done for years and years, the answer is probably no. If you’ve done something for a long period of time and your results just don’t seem as spectacular as they once might have seemed…. maybe thats a giant clue that you should take a look at it and change things up.

I work at a newspaper (big surprise, lol). This is the second newspaper I’ve worked at and the mentality here is the same as the last one. Why improve on something that appears to be working (barely)?

Because we are in the business of media, which is fast paced and ever changing. If you don’t keep up with the world, you are going to be left behind. Thats exactly what’s happening too. These companies are either changing or being left behind.

There are some things I personally fight for, which makes it hard to work at a newspaper.

  • Innovation
  • Quality
  • Efficiency
  • Organization
  • Communication
  • and being Prepared for what’s ahead

Every time I try to improve on something it is equivalent to slamming my head into a brick wall (just as painful too). Ok, ok, i’ll stop my ranting and get back to blogging good stuff. Stupid sucks though! :twisted: