A few days back into the corporate world, a day after I spent as much time as I could smiling and being polite and in general looking like an employee they would be happy they hired, it all comes back to me again.  We were told we were to work 50 hour weeks.  We, those of us who were hired, agreed.  Yesterday we hear we can work up to 70 hours per week if we want to.  But, the project does have a deadline and things do need to get done, so......it's all left hanging, but the implications are clear.

Then, a rumor goes around saying we can work from home over the weekend.  I'm all for this and would actually put in good, long days at home and really work–as opposed to working 15 minutes, taking a 30 minute break and some how fudging the numbers.  Nah.  I would absolutely never do that.  (Actually, I wouldn't.  My former business partner described me as being "pathologically honest" which I think is a compliment.  Right?)

Point is, boss says no.  We're to come in over the weekend and do the work on-site.

OK.  This is stupid.  This is a poor business decision.  Several people (including me) have said they simply will not come in over the weekend.  I can’t put in 50 hour days during the week AND several more over the weekend.  I’ll burn out.  But, back to my if-I-could-work-at-home idea, I would actually put in several hours on Sunday if I were allowed to.

The reason I say this decision is a stupid one is because the reasons she gave all have glaring flaws in them (which I pointed out, but to Gavin, not her).  If she really wanted us to work 70 hours per week and wanted us to work on weekends, why not let us log in from home?

I smell a power trip.  I-can-so-I-will.  The exercising of influence over others who are dependent upon you for a job, so if they want the work and want to get paid, then they work on my terms.  Perhaps I have supernatural powers I'm not aware of.  I can see right through her.  This reeks of an ego-trip, a power trip.  And then I think I really can't do this all over again.  Bad bosses really suck.  And, I know in the grand scheme of things this really isn't that bad since there's no harassment or hostility or anything like that.  Poor logic pisses me off but I can work around it.

Can't do this all over again?  What am I going to do?  Go from job to job looking for the right boss I enjoy working with?  I don't get to choose my bosses for the most part.  The fact they can add such flavor to the work place–what do I do with this?  What do I do with the–when it works it's really, really good and when it doesn't, it's horrid–play-on-Mother-Goose-rhyme?

What is it about power that is so alluring and yet so corrupting?  I keep hearing how Bill Clinton can walk into a room and women will want to hike up their skirts–he just has that power over them.  Having never met the man I have no idea if this is true or not, but I have a standing bet with George I will be one of the few that the former president does NOT have this affect on.  We shall see.

Power is and can be a real turn on.  Very alluring.  Very seductive.  Very, well, powerful.  It can also be horrifically annoying in the wrong hands (which I know is a giant understatement....just trying to make a point here).  So then, is it possible to have just the right balance of power and what that feeds into the ego?  Can one have that sense of alluring charisma and charm and put out just enough of that scent without it coming across as an overwhelming and cheap aftershave (or perfume)?  I really don't know.  I'm not sure I've ever met someone like that.  I don't know what that says–have I lived a sheltered life or are there really very few people out there who know how to strike that tricky balance?  Does power corrupt or can it really be the biggest asset someone can have?  And, in the mean time, what do I do with bosses who make really inconvenient decisions just because she can?