Program Evaluation

Talk about artificial stress. My partner here at the office has been weeping all day long because she cannot figure out what to write for her Performance Evaluation.

The boss this years is trying something new( I talked a little about this last week) she has emailed the staff their Performance evaluations from last year and has asked that we tale take the evaluation supply our comments as to how we feel we have met these challenges i.e. measured up. The staff are freaking out. I have not totally ‘freaked’ but I have to be honest and I had to look at the email long ad hard before I began to feel comfortable with the task. Fortunately the boss, who had just under gone her own performance evaluation and included this document with our own performance evaluation. Three staff have cornered me and asked if I understood what the boss wanted. This “second guessing the proff” was a throw back to school days when you got the term paper assignment and then to tried to figure out how to write it so the teacher would be pleased. I never just went crazy and wrote for as long and wild as I wanted—I was too frightened of being punished. I really feel this is perceived punishment for failure to produce deeply ingrained in any employee who survived the American public and parochial education systems; I think the rest of the staff was schooled in the same way because we all seem to be reacting in the same way now.

So, I am engaging this performance evaluation assignment in a new light. I am going to fill out the document as if I really want to. In fact when I worked for the independent Living Center we used to have to present to the board of directors, one a year. We were to enlighten the board of what our efforts had been the preceding year. Staff hated this assignment. We were give a window of between five and ten minutes and the staff would “die” trying to fill up the space of five minutes of their years activities. Not me. I saw this as my chance to show and glow. I saw a PBS special other night; something about how the present education system is still formulated on an older system designed to unconsciously prepare the student to work in an industrial setting, love and support the authority of management and not buck the system.

Man! Once I started in talking about my self I could have most likely filled in an hours time if I had it. Now I just have to channel this energy over to my performance evaluation. I have even used a ☺(smiley face) to set off each comment I have to make. I actually spent an hour searching the “symbols” section trying to find just the right symbol to insert. I wanted to find a skull and cross bones. I think I would have to create such a symbol and I am planning on doing just that for next year’s inquisition. Happy May Day!!