[acb-hsp] Workplace Lessons from a Prisoner

[peter altschul]

What A Year In Prison Taught Piper Kerman About Success
  By Camille Sweeney and Josh Gosfield January 24, 2013
  Two weeks into her 13-month incarceration, Piper Kerman was 
seated in the mess hall of the federal correctional facility in 
Danbury, Connecticut, eating another desultory meal.
  "Knowing less than nothing I began maligning the food," Piper 
writes in her prison memoir, stOrange Is the New Black As Piper 
made a joke about going on a hunger strike, a fellow inmate, Pop, 
overheard her.  Pop, a Russian gangster's wife, just happened to 
rule the mess hall's kitchen with an iron fist.  Pointing a 
finger in Piper's face, Pop warned her, "Listen, honey, I know 
you just got here so I know that you don't know what's what.  
That kind of shit you're talking about, hunger strikes, that kind 
of shit, that's inciting a riot.  They will lock your ass up in 
SHU [solitary confinement] in a heartbeat.  So take a tip from me 
and watch what you say."
  Piper, a graduate of Smith College whose book has been adapted 
by stWeedsst creator Jenji Kohan for an upcoming Netflix TV 
series, was building a successful career in corporate 
communications when the Feds knocked at her door and served her 
with a warrant for an arrest for a crime she had committed ten 
years earlier--carrying a bag stuffed with $10,000 in undeclared 
cash from Chicago to Brussels for a drug dealer.  After a plea 
bargain and reduced sentence, Piper landed in Danbury, clueless 
about prison dynamics--the power structures among prisoners, and 
among prisoners and the staff.
  We were curious to know about what it took to survive in 
prison, so we met with Piper.  And we were surprised to discover 
that much of what she told us about surviving in jail could 
actually be applied to one's career.
  Think about it: a prison is a lot like a workplace.  Both are 
inhabited by a bunch of people who did not choose each other and 
are stuck in the same place for some specified duration of time.  
Both a prison and a workplace are human ecosystems with potential 
risks and rewards-to-be-reaped based on one's ability to relate 
to others.  Of course in prison, the stakes are higher, and the 
downside, starker--being beaten or dumped in solitary confinement 
for a careless comment as opposed to being left out of an 
important meeting or passed over for a promotion.  But whether an 
inmate, employee or boss, people thrive (or not) based on their 
interpersonal skills.
  What fascinated us most about Piper's survival skills was how 
much they aligned with the insights we gleaned from the 
superachievers who we interviewed for our upcoming book on 
success, stThe Art of Doing.  Piper told us, "I learned in prison 
if you don't perceive reality correctly and get some detachment 
from your condition, it will be a detriment." Her strategies 
(below) required self-awareness--the ability to clearly assess 
one's self and surroundings--a theme that surfaced over and over 
with the extraordinary people in our book.
  Know the people
  "Some people will be kind and collaborative, some will not have 
your best interest at heart.  So you have to watch.  In other 
words, keep your mouth shut and your eyes open," Piper said.  
"Some people like to show off and shoot off their mouth out of 
frustration, which can lead to a conflict with another prisoner, 
guard, or other staffer."
  In a workplace, just as in prison, it pays to be observant 
about who has your best interests at heart--and who doesn't.  
Regardless of how large or small your workplace, be smart about 
who you choose to make your allies.  Gossip, trash-talk, and 
complaints have a way of coming back at you.  Particularly in a 
highly competitive work environment, why give others the 
ammunition to thwart your goals?
  Know your place
  "You have to recognize that you're not the center of the 
universe," Piper said.  "It took me a while to understand where I 
fit into the social ecosystem and what degree of interdependence 
and coexistence would be required." Piper could have paid a high 
price for assuming that inmates (namely Pop, in the mess hall 
incident) didn't take pride in their jobs.
  A workplace, whether a hedge fund firm or an NGO, will--like 
prison--have a particular culture and set of values.  Recognizing 
that it's not all about you and taking the time to understand 
that culture can keep you out of the workplace equivalent of 
solitary confinement.
  Know how to make yourself useful
  "In prison it's important to analyze the situation and ask 
yourself, `Where are the power gaps within the system?` and then, 
`What are the things that I can provide that don't already exist 
here?``" Piper said.  "Survival is dependent on figuring out what 
you have to offer.  It could be something small, like uniform 
repair, doing pedicures or letter writing."
  "Whether you're working for a Fortune 500 company or a scrappy 
startup, finding "power gapsb within the system is the first 
step."
  Piper, whose prison job was being an electrician, repaired 
small appliances for other prisoners.  "These skills can earn you 
commissary--a tube of toothpaste--and good will," she said.
  The concept of creating value for others is applicable to any 
workplace.  Whether you're working for a Fortune 500 company or a 
scrappy startup, finding what Piper calls "the power gaps" within 
the system is the first step.  Then if you take the initiative to 
use your skills to fill those gaps, you will create value and 
make yourself essential.
  Asking Piper how her incarceration has shaped her prison 
afterlife, she told us, "Prison is an experience that is 
intentionally designed to be debilitating.  Coming back is 
difficult.  But when you've experienced something so intimidating 
and frightening, it's what I call `a trump card of failure.`" Now 
when she tries something new, she said she reflects back on her 
prison experience and thinks, "It can't be worse than my previous 
failure, so fuck it.  I did t...I can do this."
  Camille Sweeney and Josh Gosfieldinin are the authors of "The 
Art of Doing: How Superachievers Do What They Do and How They Do 
It Well.
  Copyright B) 2013 Mansueto Ventures LLC.  All rights reserved.