Are you DETAIL ORIENTED, and do you think it's a COP-OUT to

Even if you are not detail-oriented, that is not an excuse for doing a poor job, so yes, I think saying that you did a bad job because you are not detail-oriented is a cop out.

I am a detail oriented person, so people who don't pay attention to details drive me crazy. Seriously, half the time I'm wondering how some people can miss details. Particularly the ones that practically leap out and smack you in the face. I've noticed that some people just don't care to do things right, paying attention to all the details that need to be addressed.

Not being detail oriented is not an excuse for doing a poor job. Either do it right or don't do it at all. I get so frustrated with people who think that the details don't matter and that they can just half ass everything. Have some bloody ownership in your work and do it right. The first time.

I think people definitely have different strengths and weaknesses. Some people would never be able to pull off a large scale event because they don't have that focus on the details, yet they have the creativity to set up and plan the bigger picture...theme, etc. I can execute, but I can't come up with ideas to save my life.

DH and I are opposites this way. He gives 100% to each task, but he does so at the exclusion of everything else. 

I rarely have the luxury of time to devote myself like that to any project. I juggle everything he can afford to ignore in order to manage our lives. And quite often things have to be done half-assed. There are good and bad aspects to both of these approaches.

It's a matter of prioritizing. Some things are just more important than others, and they deserve more attention, more detail, whether a person describes as "detail oriented" or not.  So, yes, "not detail oriented" is a cop-out.

It really depends, both on the person and on the kind of work.

My strengths are much more in the "big picture" realm. Being detail oriented is something I *can* be, but I don't particularly enjoy and it's not my strongest suit. If I have to do detail work on a tight timeframe, chances are good that it won't be as thorough as someone who is more inclined to be detail-oriented. It's not because I don't give a shit, it's because it takes me longer to get through something with that kind of focus, because it's not as natural for me. If I'm not allowed the time I need, my end result won't be the best it could be, but not for lack of effort. I very literally may not even notice something that is obvious to someone with different skills, because I am trying to meet a too-short-for-me deadline. 

I've come to realize over the years that naturally detail-oriented people don't understand that at all. They often assume that if I don't see/catch/do something, it's because I didn't try. Not true. And I'm sure there are things they don't understand about the way I work.

Now, all that is very different from being cavalier about it - like being detail-oriented just don't matter. That's not cool. I know it matters and I care about the quality of my work, so I always try to have enough time to do a good job on something that requires a lot of detail. Or, I delegate something if I know someone else will do it better.

I think it's more about not having an interest or not being important to them.  I'm pretty good about details but if I'm doing something that I have no interest in the amount of detail I put into it is diminished.  

I think it is a cop-out, because I think any person who says they aren't "detail oriented" is, if it is something they care about. For instance, my dh is very detail-oriented in just about everything he does. But when he cleans the house, the house looks clean, but the details that I care about may have been overlooked. (In that case, though, I never complain, because he does the housework, I don't, and the details I care about are not that important in the big scheme of things like... he is doing the housework!) I really have never pointed it out to him. The only time it even really matters to me is when we have people coming over.

I work with my MIL.  Love her to death but she drives me crazy because she does sloppy work.  She's been here three years and she still screws up the simplest tasks.  When I gently point it out she always says she double checks her work (yea, right) or that "it's so confusing".  Really?  Everyone else gets it but you. 

I think her strength lies in other places and it's not in this office.  (Why she is here is a long story that probably needs its own thread). 

Some days I think she could do a better job and she just does not care.  But after three years I am beginning to think she just is incapably of understanding our processes.  If she weren't my MIL I would have let her go long ago. 

I think there are detail people and big-picture people. People who are detailed generally get so wrapped up in the details they don't see their own weakness at missing the big picture. It takes both kinds of people to keep things moving forward.  It also takes knowing your personal strenghts.  If you aren't detailed oriented don't take a job that requires you to be so.

I also believe people assign the need to be detailed oriented to positions that aren't detail oriented. Customer service doesn't require a high degree of being detail oriented but it does require a high degree of people oriented skills. A person can be detail oriented but lack people skills necessery to effectively communicate what they see about the details particularly when the customer isn't going to like the outcome.

If they can't do an accurate job they are in the wrong job. period. But I don't think it is a cop-out. It is just one of those traits that being detail oriented gets glorified over being a visionary. Much like being extroverted gets glorified over being an introvert even though both should have a place in society.

Yes, it's a cop out. I'm talking more about work-related stuff. If you are in a job where the details matter, then the employee needs to figure out a way to deal with those details. Otherwise, they need to be reprimanded. There should be no excuses. If the job isn't for you, then leave. We've had a few employees leave because they couldn't handle volumes or our process. I respect someone who volunteers to leave because they realize they are in the wrong job.
Now at home, I don't care about dust, and it just kills my husband. But everything is in its proper place. Just don't look too close.

Nodding my head along with so many points brought up here already. I am a detail oriented person, and I know it serves me very well in my job - which is accounting related. Believe me, working with all those numbers you better be able to sort them out and nit-pick, or you're just gonna have a big old mess lol. However I tend to get very frustrated sometimes because I am usually the last stop so to speak, and it is my find those nit-picky little details, or "proof things out". I mean it's my job to do that, but sometimes I would have a lot less work to do if other people did their jobs properly to begin with, kwim?

^^^^this.  I am a big picture, "I have an idea"person.  I can focus on details for awhile, but it is stressful.  I am lucky enough to work with people who are detail oriented, and that partnership works very well.

Agreed! There's a difference between detailed-oriented tasks and baseline activities. Like Heartland's example, people downstream need to do their jobs.

Sure, I think to some extent it's a cop out. Many things requiire a level of attention to detail and even if it isn't your strength, you need to find a way to get it done. Stuff at work is a good example. You can't just do a half assed job and plead that you aren't detail oriented.

I think people saying they have no filter is somewhat similar. A lot of times, it's just an excuse to be rude. I get that some people are naturally inclined to blurt things out, but as adults, we need to figure out when it's important to put on that filter and follow social conventions.