As I’ve confessed in a previous article on SearchWarp
(“Reality TV – No It’s Not!"), I am a big fan of “The Apprentice". There’s something about watching Donald
Trump point his finger every week and blurt out in his own inimitable way,
“You’re fired!" that appeals to me. My
interest in the show is a great source of amusement to my wife, because I’m
definitely not the type of person who would qualify for the top 18 finalists on
the show. I don’t have a degree from an
Ivy League college (it’s from a little run-of-the-mill university). I haven’t started my own business from
scratch and turned it into a multi-million dollar enterprise. I’m not a genius and I’m not a standout in
my chosen field. And frankly, I’m
enough of a non-conformist that I’d drive Donald Trump crazy.
Like many other United States citizens, I’ve found something
I love doing and am good enough at it to make a decent living. I’m not rich, but I’m not poor either. And I’m not looking to make myself a big fish
in an even bigger pond.
So what is it about “The Apprentice" that brings me back
each week?
The Whole Nine Yards
Maybe it’s the process.
Like many other reality contests, each week one or more contestants are
removed from the competition until the winner stands alone and victorious. “Nashville Star" and “American Idol" focus
on the final result – the vocal performance.
With “The Apprentice", I get to watch an entire project from start to
finish. I get to see not only the end result,
but also everything that happens getting the teams there. I can shake my head in disgust as Omarosa
pitches a hissy fit worthy of a diva, or gasp as Alla mercilessly rakes a
fellow team member over the coals. I
don’t doubt for a minute that some scripting is going on in many of those
behind-the-scenes scenarios, “reality" format notwithstanding. That knowledge, however, doesn’t affect my
ability to enjoy the progress and see how each team uses their means to reach
an end. (Note to “American Idol"
producers: Instead of those God-awful
taped “interviews" with the contestants, show video of how these folks interact
with each other during the days between performances! It’d be a lot more entertaining!)
Taking Their Places
I’ve also found that second-guessing the project leaders is
a lot of fun. “What the heck are they
thinking? I could have made a decision
that lousy without the Ivy League sheepskin!"
I end up putting myself in the positions of the various team members,
wondering how I would handle myself in their situations. Could I motivate another teammate to do a
better job without being offensive?
Would I be able to convince other team members to go with my plan and
not be overbearing? Could I take an
unwieldy group of strong-willed individuals and turn them into a well-oiled
machine working together for the common good?
Sometimes I think I could. I do
know for a fact that I could fail as easily as any of the candidates. At least I don’t have a sterling track
record to defend, like most of them do.
Corporate Decisions
Finally, there’s the boardroom. I listen as Trump and his associates examine the reasons a team
failed in the given task. Watching each
team member justify his or her actions is nerve-wracking. It can be infuriating, too, when an
individual who did nothing to help the project, or worse, sabotaged it, cops an
attitude and tries to blame others on the team for his or her
shortcomings. Trying to determine
which unlucky candidate Trump will fire is agonizing, especially when he
appears to waffle between two or three individuals. More often than not the choice is arbitrary, as it was on the
first episode of this season. Trump was
about to fire project manager Tarek, but Summer kept interrupting him, and in
the end he changed his mind, firing her instead. (It’s not like she’d done anything spectacular during the
project.) They say Trump has to keep in
mind that he has to work with the person he ultimately chooses to be his
apprentice but I think that thought takes second place to the fact that he
wants his show to have good ratings.
The Choices We Make
But I think in the long run, I find “The Apprentice" is a
learning experience for me. I see how
the candidates work together on a project, how they handle each situation, and how
they treat each other after both successes and failures. I then examine my work situation to see if
my job performance is any better (or worse) than what I’ve just witnessed.
Even though the candidates need to work as a team, some
decisions are made based on what will keep the individual from earning Trump’s
wrath and hearing his dreaded “You’re fired!" mantra. Am I making CYA choices that prevent me from doing the best job I
can for my team? Project leaders
promise teammates they won’t be hauled into the boardroom, but bring them in
anyway to decrease their chances of being terminated. Do I break promises that I make to my co-workers and
clients? Candidates get along well with
each other for the most part, but have no problem degrading a teammate to the
audience when that person isn’t around.
Am I consistent in the way I treat my co-workers?
There’s nothing wrong with looking out for your own best
interests, and there are times when that has to take precedence over everything
else. But in today’s job market,
employers are looking much more critically at job performance and
attitude. Getting along with fellow
employees is crucial to making the team work properly. When the team looks good, you look
good. And sometimes it’s even the right
thing to do!
Oh, and for the record, in some ways I’m as fickle as Donald
Trump. After meeting all the applicants
for this new season, I was rooting for Tarek to win. After seeing the pathetic way he turned on his teammates in the
first episode, now I want to see Tarek and his smarmy little Mensa attitude go
down – and the sooner the better.
