Slaves in Suits

(Inspired by Taleb’s “Skin in the Game (SITG))

There are more slaves today than you might think, they just wear better suits, carry ID cards and laptops. They might also be highly paid and have others working under them and go on fancy vacations. They are still slaves because they’re bound in servitude, the pay assuages their guilt and they remain stuck.

They have to dress, talk and behave a certain way — you can easily make them out despite the different logos on their cards, they all have the same haunted look of a slave. Their dreams and whatever unique personality they had have been beaten out of them — now they know how to behave to be rewarded by their masters. They’ve learnt their lessons and now convinced themselves that they must play the game — hope and courage no longer exist.

I observed one such person interacting with a group of students (future slaves?) recently. He was called an expert and a leader — I was hopeful, but my brain confirmed what my gut told me the moment I saw his well pressed attire, he was a harmless slave sent out to spread the propaganda. His thoughts and responses could have been spit out by reading a few of the latest management blogs — there was nothing original, not even in the name dropping! The worst thing about a slave is that they cannot speak the truth boldly, they always give you the generic BS — they cannot push you to take risks, because their whole career is built around playing it safe. What was needed was someone to kick ass but all a slave knows is to kiss the right ones.

Bottom line — Don’t be fooled by smooth talking slaves into becoming one yourself.