One Untold Reason Why Crying Baby Gets Promoted

Have you ever wondered why some of your colleagues seem to get promoted faster than others, even though they are less competent, less productive, and less likable? Well, there are many theories on the web. Communication skills get the most credit. But there are some untold stories.

It’s not only because they could do magic communication. It’s also more than being smarter, harder-working, or more charismatic. It’s because they are crying babies. And crying babies are dangerous.

Crying babies are those employees who always complain, whine, and throw tantrums whenever they face a challenge, a setback, or a criticism. They are not interested in solving problems, learning from mistakes, or improving themselves. They are only interested in getting sympathy, attention, and validation from others. They use their tears, their anger, and their victimhood to manipulate their leaders and peers into giving them what they want: more resources, more recognition, and more power.

Here are some examples of how crying babies behave in different situations and how they benefit from their emotional outbursts:

• When they are assigned a difficult task, they cry that it’s too hard, too boring, or too unfair. They hope that their leader will either reduce their workload, assign them a more interesting task, or praise them for their effort.
• When they make a mistake, they cry that it’s not their fault, that they were not given enough guidance, or that they were sabotaged by someone else. They hope that their leader will either forgive them, defend them, or punish their scapegoat.
• When they receive a negative feedback, they cry that it’s too harsh, too vague, or too personal. They hope that their leader will either retract their feedback, apologize to them, or criticize their critic.

You might think that crying babies are annoying, unprofessional, and ineffective. You might think that their leaders would see through their tricks and get rid of them. But you would be wrong. In fact, crying babies have a secret weapon that makes them irresistible to their leaders: they make their leaders feel important. And they make the leaders feel insecure.

All the leaders more or less care about employee reviews and their word of mouth reputations. And crying babies are risk factors that are hard to mitigate.

How do they do that? By constantly seeking their approval, their support, and their protection. By making them feel like they are the only ones who can understand them, help them, and save them. By flattering their ego, their authority, and their wisdom. By making them feel like they are needed.

And that’s why crying babies get promoted. Because their leaders don’t want to lose them. Because their leaders don’t want to deal with the consequences of their departure. Because their leaders don’t want to face the possibility that they are not as important as they think they are.

So, there you have it. The untold reason why crying babies get promoted. It’s not because they are good at their jobs. It’s because they are good at making their leaders feel good about themselves. It’s because they are good at playing the emotional game. It’s because they are good at being crying babies.