#11: More Sociopaths and Psychopaths than ever
I've been reading "Life Code" by Dr. Phil replete with "The Evil Eight" and he points out that the world has changed. I think he's sugar coated it and it's even more evil than he paints it, but he points out that particularly in the last 10 years the old standards of working hard, being honest and all the factors of integrity have passed from the scene and we all need a new strategy to be a success. It's been even more than that, if you consider that "Moral Mazes" by Robert Jackall was written in the 1980s. The posts I see here on ZDnet do not inspire any sort of hope that management will ever become objective, honest and have a measure of integrity again.
The really bad thing about all this is that many of us in IT have been swept up into the "end justifies the means" ethic of "jist gitter dun" mentality with no real commitment to quality, reducing excellence to trashy commodities which may be fast and cheap but aren't particularly good.
So the experience is one which now, you probably aren't going to prosper -- particularly if you have any sort of what is moral, ethical, legal and proper -- you are going to have to settle for survival at best. I'm not sure I can recommend "Life Code" for a solution, but if you haven't gotten and read often, "Snakes in Suits" by Dr. Paul Babiak and Dr. Robert Hare, "Without Conscience" by Dr. Robert Hare (what I wouldn't give for an encephalegram of managers), "The Management Trap" by Dr. Chris Argyris and the DSM-IV, you probably are at a gross disadvantage. You need to know your enemy thoroughly and have a strategy to deal with it.
And for those of you who will join me in exiting the realm of insanity -- in my case retirement, but some of you a significant career change, say to landscaping, for example -- I heartily recommend for your recovery, "Take Back Your Life: Recovering from Cults and Abusive Relationships" by Janja Lalich and Madeleine Tobias, because you'll need it.
Sure, 30 years ago, life was good and for some in niche environments, it still is, but the world has changed and not in a very good direction when it comes to honesty, integrity, quality of relationships and trust -- particularly from and with those who hold any kind of power, and particularly those who have allowed themselves the luxury of sinking into evil by adopting the dark side of the force.
