Reply to Dinged for being "too smart" - how do I transition out of government?

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[quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous]

No matter how smart or how experienced a person is, you don't just start a job and jump to the head of the line when it comes to assignments.  [/quote]

Um, except she did.  In the private sector you would absolutely expect someone who is experienced and can deliver to have priority for assignments.

Wow.  Is the expectation in government that people should wait in line regardless of level of competence?

I can see why OP wants to get out.  [/quote]

No, it's not the expectation that people should wait in line.  But it is the expectation that people should prove themselves and should work as a team.  It also sounds like she didn't necessarily get the assignments because she is better than the other employees.  It sounds like she got them because the boss likes her.  And he realizes that he has a problem on his hands because other employees think he's guilty of favortism -- given her all of the good assignments and the others the boring work.

As experienced as a person is, it takes time to learn the ins and outs of a particular office.  It doesn't sound like OP respects her coworkers or tries to seek their input.

I worked in the private sector, and no, most of the time, when someone starts a job, they don't suddenly get all of the high-profile assignments because as much experience as they may have in other areas, they are new to that office.

If her boss thought she was the only competent one and the others were incompetent, he wouldn't take the approach he is taking now (dialing back on what he gives her and asking that she work on her teamwork skills).

Depending on the nature of the work, team work is important.  The last thing a manager wants is a fairly new employee to go off on her own with the attitude that everyone she works with is stupid and has nothing to contribute.

My sense from her post (especially the part where she was up crying all night) is that the boss is trying to spin it so as not to upset her.  But even then, he flat out told her she has to work on building relationships.  Is building relationships not important in the private sector?  Is it wise to march into a new job at a new company and from the start alienate other people and act as if you shouldn't be expected to (1) work with other people and (2) share in doing the drudge work that still needs to be done?

When I worked in the private sector, we had a lean staff.  That meant EVERYONE had to do drudge work; everyone had to pitch in.  If someone felt they were above certain work, they were eventually let go.

It isn't that OP shouldn't expect some interesting assignments, but it sounds like she went in wanting all of the interesting assignments and none of the lesser profile stuff.  You don't walk into a job with those kinds of demands.

I'm also not convinced that OP "knocked it out of the park."   Unless OP works the type of job where you don't have to engage other people at all, then I highly doubt that OP is as high performing as she thinks she is because her post suggests that she does not know how to work well with others and that she has no emotional IQ.

The highest performers I've known in the public and the private sectors were the ones who were good at their job, knowledgeable, but also good at engaging other people, good at recognizing that a truly stellar employee recognizes the need to seek input from others when and where appropriate, and good at building a network of support.  
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