评论
打印
Recent research by Wei Cai of Columbia Business School and her co-authors found that teams performed better when they had some crawlers among them.
哥伦比亚大学商学院的蔡薇和其合著者最近的研究发现，当团队中有一些马屁精时，团队的表现会更好。
People who got better assessments from their superiors than from their peers in performance-review processes were designated as “upward influencers” in the study.
在这项研究中，那些在绩效评估过程中，从上级那里比从同事那里得到更好评价的人被认定为“向上影响者”。
Too many characters of this sort is bad: at some point, team members will expend more effort competing for recognition than getting actual work done.
这类角色太多是不好的：到了某个阶段，团队成员将花费更多精力来争取认可，而不是完成实际工作。
But because these personality types are prepared to invest more time communicating with their managers, the presence of a handful of them ensures that a team does not become invisible to the bosses. A few suck-ups can be good for everyone.
但由于这类性格的人准备好要投入更多时间与经理沟通，所以这一少部分人的存在确保了整个团队不会在老板眼中隐形。有几个马屁精对每个人都有好处。
What of traits that workers find most irritating about themselves, the things that may be holding them back?
员工最恼火自己的什么特点？可能阻碍他们前进的是什么？
Impostor syndrome, the belief some people have that they do not deserve to be in positions of influence, is usually thought of as being bad for individuals and organisations alike. But it can have an upside.
冒名顶替者综合症，即一些人认为自己不配担任有影响力的职位，人们通常认为这种心态对个人和组织都不利。但它也有积极的一面。
Research by Basima Tewfik of the MIT Sloan School of Management found that people who worry about being an impostor are regarded by others as having better interpersonal skills than those who are untroubled by self-doubt.
麻省理工学院斯隆管理学院的巴西玛·图菲克的研究发现，在其他人看来，担心成为冒名顶替者的人比那些不为自我怀疑所困扰的人拥有更好的人际交往技巧。
It may be that a concern about lacking competence leads people to compensate by developing stronger relationships with others. In a world that increasingly prizes collaboration and soft skills, that is not to be sniffed at.
也许，因为担忧能力不足，人们会通过与他人建立更牢固的关系来进行补偿。在一个越来越重视合作和软技能的世界里，这一点不容忽视。
Weaknesses can turn into advantages in other ways, too. The idealised entrepreneur may drip with confidence and charisma, for example.
弱点也可以在其他方面转化为优势。例如，理想化的企业家可能洋溢着自信和魅力。
But not everyone fits that mould. In a recent study, Lauren Howe and Jochen Menges of the University of Zurich asked participants in an investment game who had been asked about their own flaws to allocate funds to startups.
但并非每个人都是这种性格。在最近的一项研究中，苏黎世大学的劳伦·霍韦和约亨·门格斯要求一项投资游戏的参与者为初创企业分配资金，这些参与者被问及自己有什么缺点。
They found that entrepreneurs who reveal a personal shortcoming, such as indecisiveness or insecurity, are more likely to attract funding from investors who share these same characteristics.
他们发现，展露出优柔寡断或缺乏安全感等个人缺点的创业者，更有可能从具有相同特点的投资者那里获得资金。
Some weaknesses are not to be admitted: stupidity, say, or narcolepsy. But flaws can sometimes help people get ahead, not hinder them.
有些弱点是不能承认的：比如愚蠢或嗜睡症。但缺点有时可以帮助人们取得进展，而不是阻碍他们。
The problem with silver linings is that they are attached to clouds. You are still being interrupted all the time. You are still surrounded by annoying colleagues. Impostor syndrome still causes you unnecessary anxiety. Your weaknesses are still weaknesses. But there are bright sides to most things in office life, and they go beyond the payslip.
一线光亮的问题在于它们附着在乌云之上。你仍然总是被人打断。你仍然被讨厌的同事包围。冒名顶替者综合症仍然给你带来不必要的焦虑。你的弱点仍然是弱点。但办公室生活中的大多数事情都有光明的一面，而且它们并不局限于工资条。
