There’s a problem with the way businesses and people historically interact. The average business has lost connection with its people. Before the 2020 COVID-19 pandemic, only 35% of the global workforce was considered highly engaged, less than 71% of workers felt happy in what they did, and many felt the mundane of the day to day led to unproductive meaningless work. These statistics worsened through the pandemic as many people lost their jobs, were separated from their coworkers and lost all connections. Work was, and still is for many, a means to an end, giving cause for concern.
We believe there is a growing, unspoken, and silent epidemic in the world. One where people have lost a sense of meaning, engagement, authenticity, and purpose in what they do. They have been bridled by corporate ladders that are inflexible and archaic. They live disempowered by company cultures that seek performance over purpose. They dream of changing these outcomes, but most business models and philosophies only discuss individualistic change, not organizational change.
The pre-existing condition of work culture that makes up corporate America goes something like this. You graduate high school and either go to college or get training that leads you to a certain job. You take an entry-level position and learn the rules so that you can keep your head down, do your job, and not make any waves. Eventually, you put in the time to get a promotion, so you can invest in more training like an MBA so you can be considered for another promotion. Years go by as you pay your dues- spending more and more hours working to get to the next rung of the ladder. Your rhythm of work and life now allows you to afford and play golf on the weekends and go on vacations in the summer. Twenty years in, you find yourself in the “inner circle,” the place you fought so hard to arrive. Now, instead of spending time trying to get to the top, you invest more time trying to stay there. You worked your whole life to get to this place, and now you are required to spend the rest of it keeping others out of it. You didn’t know how lonely it is at the top, but at least you can pay for the things your spouse and kids now require because of the lifestyle you have created for them. At 65 years old, you get asked if you are ever going to retire, but you don’t see how you could even if you wanted to.
In the process of working this corporate ladder there are some values that you buy into:
- The bigger the paycheck, the happier you are.
- The number of hours you work equals the success you will find.
- Having a “corner office” equals “I have arrived.”
- There is always someone who wants your job, so you better be suspicious of
- those around you.
- Don’t make “friends” with the people you work with, they might take your job.
There are more options than working the corporate ladder to find your version of the American Dream. We are pushing against the norm that you are a cog in a wheel and only exist to serve those at the top so that you can one day get to the top.
