The Ritual of Failure

It is an American pastime for us to complain about our jobs.  As an experiment, the next time you are at a get together with friends or family, tell everyone how fantastic you career and how special your job is, then watch them squirm.  You will get the half-enthusiastic, “That’s great.  I’m really happy for you.” backslapping but underneath it all, there is no mistaking the silent jealously bordering on disdain.  I’ll admit that in the past I have told people who asked about my job, “Ho-hum, same shit different day.” when in fact things were awesome just to avoid appearing too pleased.

In all fairness, I should have prefaced this piece by telling you I grew up on the east coast in a community where misery was not just accepted but it was a rite of passage to adulthood.  So in that way I might be a little biased, but I have also spent many years in the Midwest and although your average “conflict avoidance specialist” doesn’t wear these emotions on their sleeve, with a trained eye it is glaringly present in full force.

Why do people want others to fail?  Don’t feed me the misery loves company cop-out.  Is it monkey brain hangover of us wanting to be king of the hill?  OR Is it that we have become like veals in their cages, soft and afraid of having to actually walk the 50 yards to the killing floor?  It is just easier if someone fails because then we don’t have to try as hard?   Will we ride the slide of personal betterment to lower standards until it is too late or will we get a clue and realize that without others, the goal of success at the magnitude needed right now cannot be achieved without everyone working together?