Bob Sutton in his blog yesterday talks more in depth about something I brought up in a previous post, and I think the subject is worth revisiting. The subject is (let’s see – how can we put this delicately?) assholes. Author of the No Asshole Rule, Bob was able to collect “field research” during a talk at IDEO.

Now, I know we’ve all had our first-hand experiences with this type of person, but it’s enlightening to see some research being done on the subject.

The general consensus of his audience was that of the two types, “unintentional” and “intentional”, only the former are worth our forgiveness, patience or understanding. Sounds right to me, too, Bob.

The next theme was in defining exactly what was meant by the term. Although admittedly a bit fuzzy on this one, I like his conclusion: “Drawing the firm dividing line between an “asshole” and a “non-asshole” isn’t easy, but I know one when I see one.”

How do we know? He addresses that in a third theme, with what I think may be the definitive test: “I still believe that the ways a person treats powerless people is an excellent test of human character.”

To put it bluntly, the message is this:

If you are one, then not only do YOU know who you are, but we ALL know who you are!