Taking credit for the idea

Theres an old joke in business: So a manager shows up to work in a Ferrari. The engineer asks him how he was able to get a Ferrari. The manager says: "You know Steve, if you work hard, put in the hours, stay focused... next year I might get another one." Jokes like that run deep in American Business culture, but reality doesn't really work that way. If a manager takes credit for everyone's work they'll have a hard time motivating people, which drops productivity, which in turn will find that manager out of a job. Next thing you know people are telling the "3 envelopes joke" In my own work I try to keep my desire for "credit" as low as I can. There's a pettiness about it that seems to ignore all of the other people who made those accomplishments possible. It's hard though. It really is. I think its very human to want to be credited for work, an idea, or an insight. For me, I like to focus on the larger outcomes- Who have you helped? If the outcomes really are the results of YOUR work,…