07 October 2013

Is That Code for "Too Obviously Liberal"?


My reaction to being told, unceremoniously (because I deserve ALL THE POMPS AND CIRCUMSTANCES), that I was "not a cultural fit" was quite frankly, "no shit." The reactions others have had to the above comment, however, has been much more negative.

My mother, upon hearing their justification re: not extending my contract was appalled. Other friends mused, "sounds like a lawsuit." I had trouble wrapping my head around their very negative reactions.

"Simply put," Adam explained. "It sounds like they were saying 'we don't like your kind of people.'"

I realize I should probably and logically see that as an insult, but I jut don't. Why?

Frankly, the majority of the people who I have had the great fortune of encountering here are the sort that Phil Collins wrote "In the Air Tonight" about. (And don't you fucking knock Phil Collins because Genesis.)

More than that though, failing to fit in to a corporation's so-called culture is a very common and very current justification for the termination of - or in my case, the failure to extend the contract of - and employee. It seems almost fashionable, part of one of the newest trends in HR/business dominance theories that are constantly changing in the corporate world. You know, Six Sigma, or Strengths Finder, or Tony Robbins Philosophies, or whatever other hocum the business folk are worshipping and to which they are sacrificing their home lives on the altar of six-figure salaries these days.

But that isn't even the tip of the iceberg, really. Regardless of the fact that I look at almost all business practices with a skeptical and jaded eye, I can't help but wonder what sort of person I would have to be to have been considered a good "cultural fit."

As Groucho Marx once said, "I wouldn't want to be a part of any club that would have me as a member."

So I put my nose ring back in for the first time in months, previoulsy foolheartedly declaring I'd never wear it again. Bullshit. My stubbornness has once again lent itself to thumbing my nose, as it were, at the powers that be. I will show you how much I don't fucking fit in with you squares. 

That said, the paycheck is nice. It will be missed sincerely.

1 comment:

  1. holy mother of all evil that is the corporate cubicle hell!~ I can SOOO relate this post....& I too...have found myself walking into various "place that shall not be named" buildings on their campus feeling all the colour that is me drain as i swipe my badge....here i sit ...telling myself to breathe...one day I will find a place that celebrates individuality for what it is -- WONDERFUL

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