Another Bread Analogy in Honor of Rosh Hashanah

Author Laurence Shatkin totally digs the PITA type metaphors in our book. Today he's sharing an e-mail meme that relates different types of bread to different types of sins to be atoned for:


On Rosh Hashanah, there is a ceremony called tashlich. Jews traditionally go to the ocean or a stream or river to pray and throw bread crumbs into the water. Symbolically, the fish devour their sins. A few years back some wag came up with suggestions for breads most appropriate for specific sins and misbehaviors. Although most Jews with e-mail have seen this list at least once, it may be new to a lot of your readers. Anyway, here's the list:

• For ordinary sins: White bread
• For complex sins: Multigrain
• For twisted sins: Pretzels
• For sins of indecision: Waffles
• For sins committed in haste: Matzah
• For sins of chutzpah: Fresh bread
• For substance abuse: Stoned wheat
• For use of heavy drugs: Poppy seed
• For committing auto theft: Caraway
• For tasteless sins: Rice cakes
• For ill-temperedness: Sourdough
• For silliness and eccentricity: Nut bread
• For not giving full value: Shortbread
• For excessive irony: Rye bread
• For particularly dark sins: Pumpernickel
• For dressing immodestly: Tarts
• For causing injury to others: Tortes
• For being holier than thou: Bagels
• For dropping in without notice: Popovers
• For overeating: Stuffing
• For raising your voice too often: Challah
• For pride and egotism: Puff pastry
• For sycophancy: Brownies
• For laziness: Any long loaf
• For trashing the environment: Dumplings
• For telling bad jokes/puns: Corn bread

PITA Boss Story: You Make the Call

Bill writes in to tell us a story of a PITA boss:

I once was required to report to a supervisor who was known throughout the company as a vicious incompetent who would sell her own mother in the street if it meant her next promotion. This person had so little grasp of workplace ethics that she called me [offensive epithet] behind my back, and was so poorly educated that when I asked her if a new company policy was a fait accompli, she flew into a rage and angrily demanded that I not speak French to her.

You make the call: What kind of PITA was this boss? How would you have dealt with her? If you said "Talk to HR," that's good. But that's what Bill did and nothing happened. He ended up having to leave the company to get away from her.

BusinessWeek on Dealing with Toxic Bosses

We found during last week's radio tour that a lot of people are especially interested in learning how to cope with toxic bosses. Bob acknowledged that having a PITA boss is particularly challenging because of the power diferential between you and him (or her). He suggested pursuing PITA interventions from the book with extra tact and respectfulness.

Meanwhile, an anonymous contributor to BusinessWeek has some great suggestions for managing a particular Crusty/Rigid Combo PITA. Read all about it here.

Saturday with Maury

Readers in Cleveland, be sure to tune in tomorrow morning at 8am for Maury's Market on WERE-AM (1490).

Maury Feren has been a fixture on the Cleveland business scene for decades. He's best known as an expert on the food industry, but he also likes to interview book authors.

And that's where we come in. Even though our book isn't about edible pitas, we're sure there will be some lively conversation about the different PITA types!

LeadershipNow's Leading Blog Features PITA

Michael McKinney on the Leading Blog recently wrote about The PITA Principle in his post, "Are You a PITA?" He says the "PITA" moniker has been around since the '80s, but that it still resonates today--perhaps even more so than it did then.

McKinney also includes our self-assessment for determining your own PITA type and tendencies.

You can buy the book from LeadershipNow's LeaderShop, as well as all local and online retailers.

Jerks at Work

Nancy Germond writes on AllBusiness about the hidden costs of employing jerks (read the article here). The jerks described in this article (which quotes heavily from Robert Sutton's No Asshole Rule) are of the Crusty variety.

Costs associated with allowing jerks free reign in the workplace are the risk of losing other valuable employees, alienating customers, and downgrading everyone's productivity.

Although this type of PITA is the most visible, everyone knows that the workplace is filled with many other types of PITAs who can run off good employees and drag down the entire operation. They might not be throwing tantrums, but they are every bit as counterproductive as those who are.

Take the PITA Quiz

Want to find out what your PITA tendencies are? Take our quiz!

The PITA-with-Chips

Thanks to our Pita blog friend, dyvingduck, we have a new PITA Type to talk about: The PITA-with-Chips: that coworker who over-uses technology as THE answer to everything. As I mentioned in an earlier comment, I believe that many professionals move too quickly to incorporate technology as the solution just because they CAN, without asking and thoroughly assessing if they SHOULD. One very common, daily example of this is using email to "discuss" important issues that need resolved. Email is a wonderful thing, but it's not always the best means of communication for each and every work situation. Sending numerous emails back and forth when trying to work out a disagreement with a coworker, for example, might be a more COMFORTABLE means of expressing oneself, but I argue it's not the most EFFECTIVE means. There's no substitute for face-to-face communication when resolving conflicts if approached in a tactful and respectable manner. You're able to pick up on non-verbal cues and read your coworker's mood when communicating in person.

The Sampler Platter of Honorable-Mention PITAs

In addition to the seven primary PITA types, we've identified a bunch of other annoying PITAs you might work with. They are the following:

• The Moldy PITA: That coworker who is resistant to change, hiding out in his or her office doing the same old, same old.
• The Cheesy PITA: Those person who makes your stomach turn by constantly using all the cheesy, catch-phrase-of-the-year words like “synergy” or “seamless transition.”
• The Hot-n-Spicy PITA: The coworker who is overly dramatic and highly emotional. Everything’s a major moment and a big deal.
• The Loaded PITA: Involved in everything and can’t say “no” to anything.
• The To-Go PITA: Similar to the Loaded PITA, the To-Go PITA is constantly on the run. The difference, however, is that the To-Go PITA isn’t on the run because he took on too much; he's on the run because he was born this way and knows only one speed: high gear.
• The Porta-PITA: Just like a porta-potty, the Porta-PITA is full of crap. Porta-PITAs exaggerate points, embellish stories, and make lame excuses.
• The BLT PITA: Part of the Cheesy PITA family. But instead of using annoying catch phrases, the BLT PITA annoys people by overusing acronyms, making everything sound like alphabet soup.
• The Overcooked PITA: Belabors points, beats things into the ground, and overanalyzes everything. Due to their long-winded responses, you start to avoid asking Overcooked PITAs questions because you know it’s going to be 15 minutes before you’ll be able to get back to work.
• The Mushroom PITA: Just as mushrooms grow best and flourish in the dark, Mushroom PITAs like to keep their coworkers “in the dark” on many topics. They do this out of insecurity and the need for power, since as you know, information is power.
• The Edgy PITA: Frequently says things that are on the verge of being inappropriate or politically incorrect. Edgy PITAs like to push the envelope on controversial issues and delicate topics such as sex, race, and politics, making you feel uncomfortable being in their company.

The Seven PITA Types

The PITA Principle presents seven primary types of PITAs:

• The Sealed PITA: A Closed-off Coworker Who Doesn’t Want Your Feedback
• The Crusty PITA: A Negative, Grouchy Coworker
• The Overstuffed PITA: A Full-of-Himself Glory Hound
• The Soggy PITA: A Needy Whiner
• The Sloppy PITA: Disorganized and Oblivious
• The Make-Your-Own (Rigid) PITA: Picky and Inflexible
• The Royal PITA: A Pampered Prima Donna

Of course, there's always the possibility that your particular PITA is a combination of the preceding types, so we also devote a chapter to the Combo PITA. We end with a chapter of Honorable-Mention PITAs that serves as a bite-sized appetizer menu. (Please feel free to e-mail us at pitaprinciple@yahoo.com if you have suggestions for new PITA types.)

The PITA Principle gives coping strategies for working effectively with each PITA type--and tips for overcoming these tendencies in yourself.