Favoritism And Its Danger

The problem of favouritism, i've heard that before Maria borges became top model
she went to model contest in her country, and apparently she was rejected because of her skin tone, aparently the judge instead of choosing her, choose lighter skin girl, so Maria Borges was found by a woman and she manage somehow put her on top fashion industry, today Maria with her fashion skills, is one of favourite models of fashion icon Naomi Campbell, Maria is seen in top fashion industry as the new Naomi... moral of story
those who failed in see the huge potential in Maria they found themselves with regreted, because they had so much favoritism in their head, that  made them failed to see her potential... so in major cases favoritism is very umproductive.

Favoritism :the favoring of one person or group over others with equal claims; partiality.

 

 

The Dangers of Favoritism

If your employees are spending more time flattering you than working on important issues in your company, they are really doing you a disservice. You might feel good hearing such nice things about yourself or having consensus on every issue, but it’s doing nothing to solve problems or advance the company. The more we bask in praise, the weaker we become as leaders. We need to welcome challenge in order to strengthen ourselves. Only a weak leader is afraid to hear the truth.

 

 

-----------------

We tend to gravitate toward subordinates who make us feel good about ourselves, seem to like us, and compliment us. We hang out with them more than other employees. We reward them more often, and with better benefits, bonuses, and promotions. We brag about them to other employees, and we are more likely to show them support and attention in public. What kind of message does this send to the other employees, particularly the ones that are more challenging to us, and disagree with us on key issues?

 

 

The more you reward a behavior, the more of it you get. If sucking up is a way to get ahead and get positive feedback, people will do more of it, and the independent thinkers who would challenge us, tend to back off and become more fawning just to stay equal with the others. We have now built a team of servile, unthinking “yes men.” Do you think that’s going to make your company more successful? Hardly!
To be a great CEO, we need to be challenged. We need to hear differing opinions so we can make informed decisions. We need people to tell us the truth, not what we want to hear. And we need to know what our subordinates actually think of us.

To become a great CEO, you need to ask this question about your subordinates: “Do their words and/or actions contribute to my self-esteem, or do they contribute to the success of the company?” The answer will be obvious.

1. Operate outside your normal pattern for some percentage of the time. This allows you the opportunity to show you are not always picking a certain person for assignments. There may be some small risk in doing this, but you can mitigate it by selecting the application to change assignments.
2. Create a culture where cross training of people is routine. In doing so, you develop bench strength, and you can demonstrate less tendencies toward favoritism.
3. Be inclusive rather than exclusive with your language when you address groups. Your choice of words will give away your feelings toward others, so always seek to use language that reflects a broad rather than narrow range of people.
4. Be alert to your own body language. We communicate more through body language than words. It is important to be cognizant of your facial expressions and posture when interfacing with all people to not project a strong bias. If you are the kind of manager who pats people on the back, make sure you do that for everyone when it is deserved.
5. Test for your own biases. Most managers are not even aware of their tendency to play favorites, so it is difficult to see the damage to trust when it is happening. Seek out a trusted individual who will tell you if your actions are being perceived as slanted toward one or more individuals. Caution: do not select one of your favorite people to solicit this information or you will obviously defeat the purpose.
6. Build Trust - with high trust, people understand the intent of actions better and can interpret complex interpersonal issues between people. If trust is low, people instinctively assume the worst intent rather than the best intent.

These actions, along with a general awareness, can mitigate the problem of appearing to play favorites. Even though as a human being you do have favorite people, you can operate with fairness and integrity if you do not try to treat all individuals the same way in every instance.

----------------------------------------

 

excerpts from : Mike Harden , Bob Whipple

Edit by: Celeste ... 017-01-31

Haute Couture For Black People... Loza Maleombho

 Article original  from...  blackmattersus.com

Loza Maleombho brings a contemporary spin to traditional African craftsmanship creating Black haute couture.Raised between Abidjan and Washington, D.C., Brazilian-born Loza Maleombho injects cosmopolitan dash into native Ivorian designs with her haute couture eponymous ready-to-wear and accessories collections.Vibrant hues, musk constructions and pattern and fabric play are part of the identity of the label, which was founded in New York. With her workshop now based in the Ivory Coast, the award-win­ning designer is making it her mission to provide local sustain­able development there.EBONY magazine puts a spotlight on the gifted couturier, who highlights our resplendent cultural bearings in a bold way.

What differentiates your brand from others?

My label is original in the sense that it bridges Ivorian traditions with modern haute couture. The sil­houettes celebrate the paradox of the old and the new and the different cultural and traditional elements, but more specifically, the synergies, the contradictions and similarities between Ivorian tribal aesthetics and New York’s urban fashion. The Ivory Coast counts 60 ethnicities/tribes to draw inspiration from, and the streets of New York are a melting pot that offer an open mind to any trend possible in fashion—which is enough mate­rial for me to create countless monographs between the two.

The philosophy of the brand hangs on one quote by Theo­dore Roosevelt: “Do what you can, with what you have, where you are.” To me, this dictum, which ripples down from the conception of my collection to its production process, means any challenge or constraint that may limit our ability to progress is an opportunity to be creative. We work with artisans who have mastered their craft for generations and find ways to communicate their trade to the new set, with fashionable items that arc on trend. By creating a bridge between African fashion and the world, we’re spreading the traditional values of the continent on a global scale.

Let’s discuss your late 2016 and early 2017 collections, which were an ode to Queen Pokou, the legendary Ivorian queen who ruled over a fac­tion of the powerful Ashanti tribe.

Queen Pokou was also founder of the Baule tribe. I am part Ashanti on my mother’s side, and I noticed during my re­search there weren’t many representations of our notorious queen, so I decided to create my own modern interpretation of her. For my autumn-winter 2016 presentation, I used a real Ashanti crown and jewel, with other tribal hints such us kente cloth, handwoven by artisans. For the spring-summer 2017 collection, I expanded the concept further by employing Baule-inspired tribal masks and mixed wax prints with organza to continue my exploration of the regal yet urban stylization of the African empress.

---------
Re-edit by Celeste 017-01-30