Malcolm Gladwell, a great author for anyone interested in
self-study psychology, writes of an example in his book, Blink, about snap judgments.
In short form, there was an experiment done where a world-renowned
concert violinist played in a DC metro stop, dressed in street clothes, for
hours and hours. One person recognized
him and his work and enjoyed a concerto she would normally be playing hundreds
of dollars for. He made about 10 dollars that day, as you can imagine, because
he was written off simply by appearance as a mediocre street performer.
It’s worth an analytical moment to acknowledge what it is
that denotes power and prestiege in a work place beyond title. Say, for
example, you were never told who the boss was or how the rankings went. On day
1 it was your job to organize that in your own head. What are the indicators? Is it tone of voice? Others’ opinions of the person? Office
size? I imagine it wouldn’t take long to
figure it out.
Today, for me, the tables have turned. I am exonerated by my appearance as a lone
cubicle dweller. Here’s why:
Many times I am my own boss.
On Tuesdays and Thursdays, a series of events often leaves me in control
of my work day when the 1st, 2nd, and 3rd in
command are all busy saving the world from epidemics…literally. I work in a
small department, so I am 4th and last in command. There are several other students working here
this summer that I rarely interact with.
That’s what happens when you get your own cubicle because you are the
personal Microsoft office guru for the ever-learning 1st in
command. They all share a table with
their laptops while I live the cushy life, answering my personal office phone,
which is usually my grandmother calling ever since my mother handed out the
number like it was welfare.
In reality, I am no better than they are. I am probably less
valuable, in fact. They are all working
on a study as pre-med and nursing majors, researching things on sites other
than WebMD. Excuse me, PowerPoints don’t
just make themselves.
But a few actions of the day spoke volumes about the
hierarchy. Because of my office and
abundant interaction with the full-time employees (by sheer coincidence and
location), I am head of the interns. Big
Intern Kahuna. iBoss. iChief. At least
that’s what they think, because this was news to me until 3 hours ago.
Indicator #1:
One of the interns wandered into my cubicle and said my
name. She knows my name, and I do not
know hers. We have never been introduced
and I had actually never seen her more than once around the office since she
works in the other suite. Since the
incident, I have since asked for her name.
Indicator #2:
She asked my permission to use a computer in an empty
office. My first reaction, and what I
said was, “Sure, go ahead!” Until I
realized that she just asked me permission to do something over which I had no
power or concern, and yet there I was approving her request.
Indicator #3:
She thanked me for approving the request. Now it’s getting
real.
Indicator #4:
She curtseyed and told me “Good day, Master”. Just kidding.
Indicator #5:
Another intern asked me when he should get these back to
me, when my boss told me to ask him to look something over that I had
written. Now I’m setting deadlines for
these people. Then he thanked me. The thanking is really the key.
This is why psychology is great. This is also why you can occasionally find complete
bimbos leading our nation’s corporate front-runners. It seems to be all about appearances, confidence, and a
little bit of going with the flow; improv , if you will. All I had to do was sit in a secluded part of
the office in a cubicle and have my name dropped by the boss lady a couple
times to be deemed Head of Intern Activity. Maybe my new and sophisticated
glasses frames helped too. This seems
much easier than trying to get ahead by making good grades and being “legit”.
Do you concur?
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