
214 See Yourself as a System
personal), it is not a statement about your character or your worth as a
human being. It is a strategy and an attempt to manipulate you. Try say-
ing something like “I’m sure I could be a better person. Let’s get back to
the issue before us.”
Distinguishing between your roles and yourself also helps you ward
off unwarranted flattery, which is often designed (consciously or not) to
lull you into inaction. As we have suggested before, when someone tells
you that you are indispensable, that you were fabulous in that meeting,
listen for a little voice in the back of your head. That voice is a dead give-
away that there is unwarranted ...