You Get What You Train For

According to Word Spy, "ghosting" refers to a collection of rude behaviors that include, "[l]eaving a party, event, or group surreptitiously or without saying goodbye; [and] leaving a relationship without breaking it off." And according to LinkedIn Editor-at-Large Chip Cutter, "[p]eople are 'ghosting' at work, and it's driving companies crazy." The following part of his article was quite amusing for reasons I'll note shortly:

Image by Alexas_Fotos, via Pixabay, license.

Where once it was companies ignoring job applicants or snubbing candidates after interviews, the world has flipped. Candidates agree to job interviews and fail to show up, never saying more. Some accept jobs, only to not appear for the first day of work, no reason given, of course. Instead of formally quitting, enduring a potentially awkward conversation with a manager, some employees leave and never return. Bosses realize they've quit only after a series of unsuccessful attempts to reach them. The hiring process begins anew.

Having sent my share of job applications in to black holes over a series of moves without even an automated acknowledgment, I can't help thinking It serves them right!, although that's undoubtedly often not the case at that early stage of the process. (That said, I've run across two recruiters who did do this over the years. And one of them initiated contact.) Nevertheless, such behavior can hardly be surprising, given how widespread sloppy recruiting practices are.

There are many reasons for holding and maintaining standards of decorum, and these include what many people would call karma: When so many people feel free to treat others carelessly, it sets a poor example for the young, and the general culture deteriorates. While one person cannot single-handedly fix the problem, he can still help himself in several ways by holding himself to a higher standard. He can thereby exert a positive influence on anyone he encounters, and is more likely to attract higher-quality people to himself. Class stands out, especially to those who also have it. And if he is treated rudely, his being in touch with his standards will help him realize ... bullet dodged.

-- CAV

P.S. I wrote this post almost a year ago, before placing it into my "evergreen" queue. Some time after that, Suzanne Lucas, a favorite business writer of mine, also covered the topic.