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One in 10, one in twenty is right. I have seen this play out in my own life. At the risk of flattering myself, I became very alienated at the last job I had. A boss who shamelessly backed her favorites at the expense of others, coworkers who had high opinions of themselves but resented my speed and accuracy, and both my boss and coworkers who resented the fact that I had a pretty cheery attitudee about life, quietly did a ton of stuff under the radar, and also never really helped them do their stuff (since after all, they never really helped me).

After I quit they went bonkers - very venemous and vindictive, while I never lost my cool. In fact, they pretty much ran me out of town but I didn't care - I had quit and already had myself set up in my new city. But the morale: they took the contributions with glee, but resented the person who provided.

What my contacts at the firm did tell me after I left, was the staff's inability to cope with the workload. Morale worsened. Many complaints of the workload somehow "tripling" - though it never outwardlly occured to the crew that the workload didn't triple - they were just now missing the contributions of the one key player. Too many weekends for the staff at the office - weekends that I quietly did, without complaint and without making a lot of noise.

We were a staff of one supervisor, 3 main project managers, and 2 gofers. I was one of the project managers. After I left, it all hit the fan. My boss's department deteriorated. They simply couldn't keep up. One of the other case managers suddenly quit 3 months after I did, with a cover-story about going to "grad school" though he simply left because he couldn't take it any more. The people they hired to replace me and him were way too green - the first replacement ended up quitting in a week, as he just didn't like the scene or the people. I don't blame him.

All of this makes me understand just how dead-on right Ayn was. I tell anyone who will listen, "Go where you are celebrated, not where you are tolerated." Misery doesn't love company, it demands it!!! And the average folks will truly resent those that have a good handle on the job abnd life in general.

Word from my old office is that the whole department will be run out of town and outsourced, probably around early 2003. The scuttlebut is that they appear to have no idea this is in the works. You reap what you sow.

I hear you, HitmanNY.

Hitman, your experiences parallel my own. Thank you for telling them so well. Whenever I hear or read about someone else who works hard and works well and is not properly appreciated, leaving a company that is loaded with deadweight (who is usually related to or having 'relations' with the owner/manager), I feel validated yet again for doing the same thing myself years ago.

I had a similar experience, but with a twist. I was contracting for a Silicon Valley company, and had been doing work for different departments. I got put in one department where I was surrounded by people who not only didn't do any work, but who didn't speak any English. They just sat around and had their little bull sessions all day long.

I finished my project, and then quit doing any more projects for that company, and I let them know what I thought of that department as I was leaving. Four months after I left the department was shut down and the people scattered to other groups.

I'm a doer, like you, and my competent management kept me quite busy and happy for 10 years; but when that management was promoted, a worthless good-old-boy supervisor moved into that management spot and I was on the *hit list.

That manager did everything possible to get me to leave, but I had growing kids so I just kept pumping out great work for another twelve years, working often on major proposal efforts -- thereby working amongst top management people from other areas within the corporation.

Then, when the day arrived that I was ready and eligible for early retirement, I took the parachute package and walked out the door. Soon after that, I went to work as a consultant; and I was introduced to Ayn Rand, where I identified myself with such as Atlas Shrugged's Hank Reardon.

That former manager of mine -- also eligible for early retirement -- decided to stay, only to be unceremoniously and involuntarily walked out the door a few weeks later. Last I heard, he's done nothing since.