“Remind them they’re replaceable.”
I about threw up.
I mean, technically, the boss was right. I guess.
Come in to this place, don’t ask questions (at least not stupid or personal ones), keep your inside voice on, comply, sit still, and do a good job. Always. And for sure don’t be yourself.
Because, we can replace you.
Your humanity, life circumstances, unique perspective, and your dreams don’t really matter that much.
They didn’t say this verbally, but the energy from the culture told the story.
Shut up and do your job.
“Um, no thanks, I’m good.”
I didn’t say that out loud either, I was too afraid.
Control and compliance environments work! For awhile. And until they don’t.
Shouldn’t the humans who work at a place, with a team, and on behalf of serving others, be celebrated and cheered for more than criticized?
Wouldn’t work be better, more productive, more life-giving if we viewed people as irreplaceable instead of cogs?
I’m a massive work in progress. I get scared. I second guess. I screw up. I get frustrated.
But I’d like to be part of a work world that celebrates our irreplaceability more often than I feel the need to remind people they’re replaceable.
Because they’re not. They’re uniquely human.
