No BS here — this is frank advice on what a LOGCAP experience is
all about.
There have been countless scores of ill-prepared people seeking to
better their lives, who whether by naïveté or wide-eyed innocence,
have come onto the LOGCAP project with the misguided notion that
there would be an atmosphere of patriotism, camaraderie, or
esprit-de-corps of cooperation and professional
consideration.
An environment in which one would interact
with colleagues and enjoy support, mutual collaboration — even
friendship. One team, one fight... that sort of
thing.
LOGCAP is not this kind of environment.Anyone who
arrives on the project with this Pollyanna attitude is an ingénue in
denial and will quickly discover that, for the most part,
the stark reality on LOGCAP is totally the opposite of a
collaborative environment. Unquestionably, these people are destined
to become fodder for the blood-thirsty opportunists who will step on
the backs of whoever is necessary, in order to climb what they
perceive as the corporate ladder. Are you feeling me?
Be Warned — You Will Deal With Very Difficult
People.You will encounter people in positions of
authority who could never be in comparable positions back in the
so-called "real world", as they use bluff and bluster to
cajole, threaten and intimidate those around them in an attempt to
conceal their own ineptitude and inability to perform the
job.
Compounding the problem is a system rife with
favoritism, quid-pro-quo (this for that), back-stabbing,
under-handedness and nepotism, in which those who possess genuine
talent and leadership skills are dubiously viewed as a threat to be
eliminated. This posse is popularly known as "the good 'ol
boys".
You must change your approach before
you arrive.To say this type of atmosphere can be challenging to
deal with — particularly if you are a reserved person, with a quiet
disposition — qualifies as the under-statement of the
year. If you do not experience a paradigm shift in your
thinking, you will be exploited and used as a scapegoat in an acrid
atmosphere where culpability and blame are the defacto modus
operandi.
A meek, humble, or contrite attitude will get you thrown
under the proverbial bus.Moreover, you will
find that many of the "powers that be" expect you to actively
display an attitude of subordination, subservience, and tacit
acquiescence to their will — and they expect this from all whom they
scornfully view as somehow being beneath their station in life. This
isn't like the caste system — this is the caste
system.
You are a worm. Gelatinous,
sub-microscopic amoeba excrement, there only to serve your master
with blind allegiance, there only to carry out their every whim. You
will find this attitude particularly rampant among long-tenured
employees — thoroughly entrenched members of various cliques,
possessed by a delusional sense of entitlement. Am I getting
through?
Prepare yourself in advance — and there's one particular book
that can help.Prior to coming onto the project, I highly
recommend you read The No Asshole Rule: Building a Civilized
Workplace and Surviving One That Isn’t by Robert I.
Sutton.
If I didn’t know better, I could have sworn
he had LOGCAP in mind when he wrote the book. It is an insightful
analysis and practical guide in fore-arming yourself with knowledge
— and it can mean the difference between being a successful
survivor, or becoming a defeated, demoralized, inanimate
statistic.
There's an inordinately high rate of
turn-over in LOGCAP — don't add to it.
This is more than just keeping your head down and working
hard.Much more. You must master the finer
tactics of verbal Tae-kwon-do, becoming a virtual virtuoso of
tactfully cutting your opponent off at the knees. You must become a
veritable Sensei in the ways of presenting infallible logic
in such a manner as there is no room left for argument. It is
imperative to develop an enhanced sense of discernment in order to
anticipate the cowardly attacks of your enemy, by employing
impeccable timing in both presentation and setting.
One must
know how to deflect your enemies’ pitiful attacks, causing them to
use their own misguided inertia against themselves, thus conserving
your energy and allowing you to focus and concentrate. You must know
how to thrust and parry when necessary — when to press, and when to
step back.
Is it all this bad?Not always.
I'm not saying you won’t find some helpful, friendly people — you
will, and when you do, you must form strong, strategic alliances, as
there is power in numbers.
However, you will unfortunately
encounter a large portion of individuals who are seemingly
self-absorbed, disconnected and disinterested, with single-minded,
wholly self-serving interests. Additionally, there is a plethora of
individuals who are what I refer to as anal retentive,
pseudo-intellectual eggheads, who, when given a small amount of
authority, will invariably morph into boss wannabes.
A few of the fascinating kinds of people you'll meet on
LOGCAP.According to the Meyers-Briggs personality indicator
tests, people generally fall into 4 basic categories. These
personality types are:
- the typical aggressive,
- passive,
- combination passive-aggressive,
- and assertive.
Aggressive people, of course, are
defensive — they act first, ask questions later and will generally
go from zero-to-asshole in 4.2 seconds or less, depending on
environmental considerations. They are generally knuckle-dragging,
machismo, Neanderthals with an extremely low EQ (emotional
quotient).
Then there are the passive types who are
generally shy, introverted and will allow themselves to be
treated like a doormat. The aggressive, bullying types (driven by
their personal demons which involuntarily compel them) like to
maintain a sufficient inventory of passives on hand, in order to
vent their aggression on. Aggressives go about as a lion roaming the
earth, seeking whom they may destroy.
A blunt word about background checks.The background check
performed on LOGCAP candidates only goes back 7 - 10
years. Consequently, individuals with a criminal history
preceding this statute-of-limitations are not required to
reveal any charges, convictions, incarceration, jail time or time
served in a state or federal penitentiary.
Can you
guess what the implication of this means? That is correct.
It means that some very bad people with no compunction can
be found working on the LOGCAP project.
You’ve got your
gang-bangers from the Bloods, the Crips and even one of the most
notoriously violent gangs with world-wide associations — MS 13. The
highly stylized Roman style of graffiti utilized to "represent" a
gang's presence can be found everywhere on LOGCAP,
especially (and appropriately enough), in the portable
out-houses.
Don’t necessarily take my word for
it, just run a search using the keywords "Iraq
Afghanistan gangs" and you will find the facts confirming
what I'm telling you here.
Why am I so direct about all this?It has been suggested to
me that I'm not doing myself any favors — in terms of finding new
clients — by being so forth-right and revealing in regard to some of
the negative aspects of working on LOGCAP.
To the contrary, I
believe that by giving people honest, straight-forward
information and making no attempt to marginalize or conceal
anything (which could conceivably cause me to lose revenue), this
approach increases my credibility as an authoritative source for
raw, unfiltered and unadulterated information that you can
base an intelligent decision upon. |
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