system error

A couple of years ago I was working what I would describe as “a crappy sales job”—that’s the industry term—and my boss, a former nightclub bouncer, had a simple approach to sales motivation: yell at your people and if that doesn’t work, yell some more.

Surprisingly, I was not inspired by this approach.

Neither was a good friend of mine who also worked for the bouncer-turned-salesman. We both hated the job and left as soon as we could. Recently, my friend ran into our former boss. He was telling me about the encounter and as we talked about it my friend commented that he didn’t think the guy was so bad. “It’s the system,” he said. “Remove him from that system and he’s really not such a jerk. He could be a lot of fun.”

I’ve been thinking about what my friend said—about the roles we play in the systems we are a part of. The more I think about it, the less I agree with my friend.

A system (group of people) is very much the sum of its parts. Granted, the “corporate culture” of my old company is a mess and my former boss is not to be blamed for that reality. But neither is he to be excused for his contribution to it. He may not have been solely responsible for every flaw, but he chose to stay within that system and to become a part of it. In that sense, his character is a reflection of the system.

When a person finds him/herself submerged in a dysfunctional system, he/she has three choices:

1. Leave the system. My friend and I chose this option.

2. Attempt to change the system from within. This is much harder than it sounds.

3. Join the system. This is, far and away, the easiest option because a lack of action (failure to aggressively pursue options 1 or 2) will automatically lead you to option 3.

Our old boss is living out option 3. He’s right there, immersed in a culture of greed, lies and scream-motivation, not because the company is screwed up and has corrupted him, but because he lacks the character to take a stand or leave. I don’t think that makes him a good guy. I think that makes him weak and cowardly.

And this brings me to myself. I cannot pass such harsh judgment on another without considering myself. What affect do I have on the environment around me? Do I pay enough attention to notice dysfunction in my own world? In my company? In my friendships? In my marriage? In my family? And when I find dysfunction, do I bow to it, court it, appease it, surrender to it? Or do I take a stand, holding true to the character I aspire to, even if it’s harder to do so?

All too often I go along to get along, and that just won’t do. I don’t want to end up like the bouncer-turned-salesman. I don’t want to find people saying one day that I’m probably a good guy underneath all the lies and the screaming. I want people to know my character because they know me. And I don’t want to blame the system I live in for my flaws. I want to change the system I live in for the better, in spite of my flaws.

Lofty goals, I know, but you gotta dream...