What the Voodoo Dolls Accidentally Taught Me:

• You don’t have to fight everything head-on.

Riley was going to go for something. I could either try (and fail) to stop him altogether, or give him one sanctioned target and quietly protect the rest.

• Redirection beats repression.

Telling someone “don’t” rarely works once they’re mid-pounce. “Yes, but over here” travels a lot farther.

• Sabotage can be repurposed.

Whoever wrapped those dolls wanted mischief, maybe drama.

What they accidentally gave me was a training tool: A live demonstration of how focusing energy reduces damage instead of amplifying it.

• Agreement doesn’t always look like a signed document.

Sometimes it’s a nod.

Sometimes it’s a status email.

And sometimes it’s a cat lying on his back, eyes glazed, not touching anyone else’s doll.

Is it enforceable in court? No.

Is it enforceable in my department? Absolutely. I have a tiny group of witnesses.

If you work with humans instead of cats, the principle is the same:

Got a chaos engine who wants to be “in everything”? Give them one project they can own instead of twelve they can disrupt.

Got a chronic complainer? Channel them into structured problem-spotting with actual follow-up instead of hallway monologues.

Got mystery sabotage from another department? Turn it into a leadership lesson while you quietly trace the purchase order.

The point isn’t to stamp out energy.

It’s to give it a landing pad that doesn’t burn the building down.

So yes, someone out there thought they could rattle us with anonymous voodoo dolls. Instead, they handed me a pretty good metaphor.

You can try to control everything, or you can offer the cat his own doll and call it an agreement.

I know which one I’m choosing.

Donna

#FromDonnasDesk
#ManagementByRedirection
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