This Is What I’d Do – Actually, This Is What I’ve Done 

    Recently we’ve heard a lot about how Trump is treating Russia’s Putin. Most people including President Obama, are really pissed at Putin right now. Russia’s supposed messing with the recent U.S. elections has triggered a great deal of negative feelings for Putin and Russia in general. A number of U.S. law enforcement entities have told us that they are certain that the Russians were indeed trying to tweak our election. How they were doing this has not been made clear to us lowly citizens, as far as I know, except to inform us that it was done via computer hacking. I suppose we would not understand anything more technical than that. Who exactly was responsible for doing this tweaking has also not been made clear to us lowly citizens, as far as I know. I guess we are not to be trusted with such delicate information. We are just told that ‘they’ were doing ‘this’ and we are supposed to trust what we are told. Well, good luck with that. 
    Anyway, Trump seems to be taking a somewhat wait-n-see approach to the situation. This has the administration and the purveyors of our news in a froth, wondering why he is so soft on Russia and Putin. The media, who know everything, but are not responsible for anything, are leaping to all sorts of sinister conclusions. 
    I compared what his actions seem to be to my own experience in dealing with possibly problem people and situations. During my career, I was hired to manage several companies that were struggling. I was brought in as either the President, CEO, General Manager, or whatever the top slot in the company was called. 
    Before arriving at the assignment I was usually given a verbal analysis of the people who would be reporting directly to me. These analyses could come from the hiring entity or from the direct reports themselves.
    Considering that these companies were already in deep trouble, (that’s why I was there), and because a company’s trouble usually started with management, these analyses nearly always pointed out at least several of my future direct reports to be anywhere from simply incompetent to actually being guilty of maleficence. This information was always hearsay. 
    This is how I used the offered information. 
    I never reacted in any way until I was actually in charge of the company, and had been for at least a little while. I just tucked the information away in the back of my mind. To react to it before I could personally get acquainted with the people and the situation, would in my opinion have been irresponsible. 
    After getting acquainted with the people and assessing the situation I took appropriate action. Very seldom was the information even 50% accurate. 
    Until I had assessed the situation for myself, I treated everyone as if I had not heard anything negative. 
    How to deal with Putin if I was assuming the presidency of this country? I’d want him to think I was his buddy until I could assess the situation from inside the White House, then if he deserved it I’d lower the boom on him.