The Crab Bucket Mentality
The other day I was viewing a documentary about Jesus, and although I am
still not sure what to really think of this historical figure -- from his
ambivalent existence up to his claim of being the Son of God -- the
documentary thought me one general lesson:
No matter how good your intentions are: If you leave your old environment,
gain knowledge and experience, return as a changed person, and try to share
the knowledge you gained with your old friends and relatives, they will have
a hard time accepting it.
In JesusÆ case he was even chased out of Nazareth when he tried to
communicate his newly obtained views to the Nazarenes.
The main eye-opener for me here was, that the unwillingness to accept
direction from an old acquaintance that grew in some regard, is not
something that is limited to just one society. ItÆs a human mentality.
In the past I used to think that it was a typical frame of mind of the
residents of my home country in South America, where I often heard fellow
countrymen, who returned from a study or work experience abroad, complain
about the obstructionist attitude of the ones who now had to follow their
orders. There was reluctance, actually blatant refusal, to cooperate with
these returned citizens.
It seems that people are more willing to accept instructions from strangers
than from old acquaintances. In the documentary, Jesus obtained his great
success after he left Nazareth and started spreading his inspirational
message in other cities where he had been totally unknown before.
But isnÆt that a sad reality overall? Even more when we consider, that it
does not only apply to countries and cities, but also to work environments!
If you start somewhere at the lower or middle ranks in a certain workplace,
and you use your spare time wisely for studying, you can rest assured that
in most cases you will have a hard time earning a promotion, and an even
harder time being accepted as a new supervisor in a familiar environment.
Most people just donÆt want to accept orders from a previous peer.
However, contradictory to the examples above, it seems to work better in
work environments if you leave for a while, and return after a year or two
with your newly obtained knowledge and visions. You may still encounter
impediments from old colleagues, but the chance is bigger that you succeed.
On a larger scale, especially when returning to your old town, the story
usually works out less favorably.
Now, that being said, it may very well be that this mentality manifests
itself stronger in small towns than in metropolitan areas where most people
donÆt know each other, and thus, donÆt keep track of each otherÆs
whereabouts.
This article is not teaching anything new. ItÆs just meant for us to keep in
mind, and to reflect on our own circumstances: Did we encounter the same
troubles in our career? Or were we the ones who gave our old buddies a hard
time when they gained knowledge while we were busy doing other things?
Joan Marques, Burbank, February 15, 2004
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About the Author:
Joan Marques, holds an MBA, is a doctoral candidate in Organizational
Leadership, and a university instructor in Business and Management in
Burbank, California. You may visit her web site at www.joanmarques.com
Joan's manual "Feel Good About Yourself," a six part series to get you over
the bumps in life and onto success, can be purchased and downloaded at:
http://www.non-books.com/FeelGoodSeries.html-----------------------------------------------------
It is better to live in serene poverty than in hectic abundance. Everything
has a price. The price for nurturing your soul is turning away from
excessive stress, destruction of self-respect, and the constant strive in
lifestyle with the Joneses. But itÆs worth it.
[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]
