Comments on: Business and Bullshit

By: Rod Serling

Rod Serling — Tue, 21 Sep 2010 08:24:29 +0000

I agree. However many firms foster cultural BS by unethical claims.Take for example Trinity Custom Homes in Ga.They claim to have 40 years in business yet have only been around since 2003!

By: Oricale174

Oricale174 — Wed, 24 Dec 2008 02:46:01 +0000

I think your all missing a very important point. Regardless of your opinions about bullshit. It exist in all cultures and has since people started talking. It ain’t going away. LEARN TO DEAL WITH IT!

By: S.M.Mehdi Hassan

S.M.Mehdi Hassan — Fri, 16 Feb 2007 19:44:05 +0000

This whole issue depends on the salesperson; on his conscience. If the sales person decides that he would not lie to his customers and wants to make a long lasting relationship then he would not do this. On the contrary, if a sales person thinks that he has to sale a product, it doesn’t matter whether it is defective or does not fulfill customer’s need,how many units sold matters most then he can “BULLSHIT.” No one can control it; not the government, not the customer, not the company. Only a salesman has to decide which path he/she should go.

By: Alexander Kjerulaf

Alexander Kjerulaf — Fri, 16 Feb 2007 18:23:17 +0000

As a real-life example, David Maister has a great story on a company that screws up with a major customer and faces the choice of whether or not to bullshit: http://davidmaister.com/blog/333/

By: Charles H. Green

Charles H. Green — Fri, 16 Feb 2007 14:58:52 +0000

I’m a little extreme on this one.

I think managing expectations is itself a form of lying–either about what you’re going to do, or about what you’re doing.

I also think bullshit is quite harmful in business–to the one doing the bullshitting. If I ask a question of someone who’s trying to sell me (or otherwise represent the company) and they bullshit me, they have failed to differentiate themselves from the vast population of bullshitters out there who themselves, by and large, bullshit.

But if they actually tell me the truth–whatever it may be, including most particularly “I don’t know,” then I know I have encountered someone very vauable–someone who tells the truth. A truth-teller. Someone I can trust.

Because who’s going to lie about that?

And the impact on me of someone who tells the truth is quite strong. First of all, I’m more likely to buy what they’re selling if I trust them (assuming the product or service is within acceptable bounds of quality for me). But second, I am vastly more likely to return to you when I need what you have to sell. And to tell others. And so on.

The problem with bullshitters is they never look past the transaction. They think life is a series of transactions. They forget that life is a set of relationships, represented in a series of transactions. A bullshitter lives to impress me, to get the sale. A truth-teller is focused on helping me, not himself; believing that in the long run, he will benefit more by having done the right thing in each transaction. And, he’d be right

By: jav

jav — Thu, 15 Feb 2007 18:41:53 +0000

There is another aspect to this, when I am buying something I am already discounting my expectations because I expect some bullshit from a salesperson. So is a salesperson better off avoiding BS or is he hurting himself by consciously avoiding BS.

My suggestion would be to mentally note down all the BS that was peddled, get back to the product manager and ask which of it is right and which is wrong, and go back to the customer BEFORE the deal gets signed off and tell him that he in fact misspoke or us a different diplomatic term. If he has to sign the deal right away then it is better not to BS as it would come back to bite him.

By: Daniel Sweet

Daniel Sweet — Thu, 15 Feb 2007 16:09:49 +0000

So, am I reading this correctly by seeing it say, ‘Engaging in vanity [don't want to admit we don't know] and/or covering up our own incompetence [we're supposed to know something, but don't] is a positive, accepted business practice’?

And did I really read, ‘Lying to your customers [about your intent to implement a feature] is good because then you find out what they really want’?

Was it bullshit when Enron was giving “positively spun forecasts of revenue”? I mean, it could reasonably be said that, given all of the side deals, the spokesmouth didn’t know the truth.

I don’t think we need to look for a slippery slope here.

Dan

By: James Drogan

James Drogan — Thu, 15 Feb 2007 15:49:43 +0000

I just finished the same book. I’m inclined to think that bullshit has a useful place in life. The weekly meetings of Parliament (in the Bronx) is filled with bullshit.

But is has no place in business dealings. The reason? It compromises necessary relationships.

Finally, I’m reminded of the First Law: Know what you know, know what you don’t know, and know who knows what you don’t know. Bullshit works against the law.

By: laurence haughton

laurence haughton — Thu, 15 Feb 2007 15:32:54 +0000

Two problems with bullshit (of the top):
1) You believe your own bullshit and become a phony and a moron.
2) Successful bullshit encourages you to bullshit more. Soon all you are is bullshit right up to your eyeballs.

By: Alexander Kjerulaf

Alexander Kjerulaf — Thu, 15 Feb 2007 15:15:03 +0000

I guess a simple way to look at this question is to turn it around: As a customer of a company, do you want them to bullshit you, or to be honest?

Are you going to keep buying from the software company that keeps the features you need “on the road map” indefinitely?

Positive, long-term, trusting relations between companies and customers go best without bullshit.