How to know when you're fucked.

Last week Dave Trott wrote on his wonderful blog that he was called in a Tweet or some such "highly opinionated." http://www.cstthegate.com/davetrott/2011/10/highly-opinionated/

Dave's post got me to thinking about writing or thinking or speaking that isn't easy, glib, predictable or a neat repackaging or re-stringing together of catchphrases and buzzwords. That led me to write this post: http://adaged.blogspot.com/2011/10/short-vs-long.html

Today I was in a recording session and something came to me. The client and the account people had really fouled this one up. Three or four rounds of changes had come in after the script was approved. After I recorded the script a week ago.

Then I got a "Final" script from the client, a script the client and the account people had ostensibly read. In the first sentence I noticed an egregious typo.

I blew a fuse.

But of course this being the 21st Century, I blew it in a 21st Century way.

I know what would happen if I reacted as I wanted to.

If I cursed the account people.

If I canceled the session and sent the talent home.

The word would get out.

The words, actually: "George, he's difficult to work with."

These days there can be no more potent imprecation.

If you don't do your expenses in a timely fashion, thinking that client business comes first and you have no assistant, "You're difficult to work with."

If you refuse to noodle type when you're coming up with concepts, "You're difficult to work with."

If you fight with tooth and nail the bland and banal, "you're difficult to work with."

In the HR Hegemony we live in no malediction will undo you quicker.

You're not polite.

Placid.

A puppy dog.

"You're difficult to work with."