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Watch out for salami tactics
Thursday, 8 February 2007
It's a fact of life that most people on Earth don't feel like they're getting everything they deserve to. We're just one big dissatisfied lump of humanity. Because of this, people can often be pretty scheming when it comes to getting their way. You have to watch out for the often subtle tactics they'll use to get around you, especially if what you want is opposed to what they want.
One clever method people use is known as salami tactics. This involves realizing that you're probably not going to get the entire "sausage" at once, so instead trying to take it one "slice" at a time.
The classic use of salami tactics is during wartime. A despot may want to invade a few neighboring countries, but he realizes that doing so will likely trigger a wider war with other powers. So instead, the despot tries to seize land a bit at a time. He takes one bit of land, waits for the outrage from other powers to die down, then moves onto the next bit. Little by little he moves towards his goal, giving his enemies a chance to get used to the new situation at each step.
Employers also often use this tactic to squeeze more from their employees. They'll gradually shrink teams by laying people off, but still expecting the same amount of work. The remaining employees must work harder and harder for the same pay. But because the changes occur slowly, the remaining employees put up with them. If they were asked to do two people's jobs immediately, many of them would storm out the door in a rage. But because employers ratchet up the workload slowly, the employees put up with it.
The same tactic is often used by employers to reduce benefits.
You can also see this in friendships. One friend imposes on the other for little favors here and there. Before you know it, lots of outrageous favors become situation normal. But because the changes were done slowly - slice by slice - the sucker friend learned to accept the changes rather than being outraged by ridiculous demands.
Salami tactics are extremely common in all sorts of areas of life. Watch for people who try to force compromises onto you one palatable bit at a time. They're almost surely trying to get those insignificant slices to add up to become one big sausage.
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