You shape the job and the job shapes you.
Take two 21 year olds with roughly the same personality. Have one become a firefighter and the other a police officer and then check back on them in seven years. Each individual's attitudes and instincts will have been distinctly shaped by the job. Firefighters and cops that I've known acknowledge this and even joke about it. (One person who'd worked with both groups said it was like dealing with German Shepherds and Golden Retrievers.)
Consider other cases. The stereotypes about lawyers, doctors, accountants, cowboys, sales reps - and, yes, consultants - exist because they contain at least an element of truth. It is a challenging task to work in a field without falling prey to the negative aspects of the stereotype and by that I don't mean the attitudes of others. I mean the actual attitudes and approaches that are part of the negative side of the stereotype. You need to guard against becoming a walking, talking, version of the stereotype.
As a consultant, I am required to read a small mountain of material related to my work. In order to foster some balance, I purposely include books and articles that are completely different. Unusual novels, nonfiction works with which I disagree, and other writing that is simply out of the routine serve as palate cleansers. It also helps to have a circle of friends with diverse interests so you aren't always talking shop.
I recall meeting a young man who was starting out in politics. Although he was of another political party, he struck me as a decent and serious person who would truly do his best if elected. He won the election and then moved up the ladder a few rungs. He then started to be less successful. I hadn't seen him since the first meeting when our paths crossed at a farewell party for a mutual friend. The experience was saddening. He'd lost his original nature, the one that had contributed to his success, and had become just another stereotype of a politician. I was reminded of Adlai Stevenson's remark that the trouble with running for office is by the time you get it you no longer deserve it. This young man had held out longer than many but was now just another back-slapper.
Fighting stereotypes is a challenge, but not everyone succumbs. You can find lawyers, politicians, police officers, and so on who maintain the ability to step outside of their roles and keep perspective.
But it requires daily work.
2 comments:
Without doubt your profession leaves its stamp on you. I'm an accountant, and all long time accountants I know have the same stamp of being careful, thorough, and generally well prepared.
However, the key to not becoming a stereotype is to not allow your job to become your entire definition of who you are. Hence, I consider myself a Christian, a reader, a thinker, a father and a husband before I consider myself an accountant.
You can choose what you allow to define you. You can choose what, and who, you allow to influence you. The trick is to choose influences which will lift you up and not drag you down.
To use a frequent quote from Jesus, you should be in the world, but not of the world.
Pawnking,
I like your thinking and the statement by Jesus is one to remember daily.
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