The Incompetence Conundrum

Da: "We're working as a team to make this dinner, do you know what they call that?"

Mom: "Collaboration?"

Me: "Incompetence?"

Da: "Cluster Fuck."
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Weekdays are 60 - 70% conference calls for me. Do you know how you can tell if someone is new or incompetent?

They talk a lot.

It's a complete mystery.

If you're new, you should spend a lot of time listening and observing, right? If you're incompetent and you know it, why draw attention to yourself?

And if you're incompetent and don't know it, well, that's just a goddamn shame.
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FYI: I had to look up how to spell incompetent.

Shaddap, seriously.
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We're all incompetent at something. Hell, multiple things.

Cooking and chemistry are weak areas for me. Since they are essentially the same thing, we can say this is just one area of incompetence, correct?

I can be very impatient, although middle age has mellowed that somewhat.

I still swear quite a bit, but that is more of a response to my overall incompetence, rather than an actual incompetency.

If you don't know what you're not good at, you should give it some thought.

Now.

This is not an opportunity to beat yourself up over what you can't do well. That's not the point.

Most of us already do that more than we should, right? It's that shitty little voice in your head, constantly reminding you of your past foibles and cock-ups.

If you've got that voice, it's actually a good sign. Because the people who are incompetent and don't know it, don't have that voice. They think they're doing just fine, all the time.

So next time the shitty voice starts up, just say "thank you for sharing" and shut it down.
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Incidentally, last night's collaborative cluster fuck of a dinner was outstanding.

So once you've identified what you're not good at, surround yourself with people who are good at it, and it'll all work out just fine.
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I am listening to: House sounds
I am reading: Religious Constriction by Charles Blow, New York Times
And I am: Incompetent at spelling incompetent