We have Created Our Own Monsters
I know we all just want to have some sense of satisfaction in our lives. To feel that we matter - somewhere. To feel that we make a difference. It's universal... but so many don't have that because of circumstance or society. But that's another issue. What we, in the US Tech Industry have created is a class of people that feel entitled to things that they have no entitlement to. My sister calls these The Soccer Trophy generation.
If someone is told - at every possible turn - that they are amazing, valued, better than the rest, then their sense of reality is being formed in those moments. If all you allow a person to see is a mirror, reflecting back to them that they are the center of the world, then they have no opportunity to see what reality is like outside those mirrors. It's not surprising then, when these people get angry when the context is changed, and it's time to work together with others of differing opinions, and then all of a sudden, things go very badly.
Over the last five years, I have been working with folks that fit this profile perfectly. They are fine people - at least in comparison to most federal inmates. But they are employees that feel the company owes them a sense of purpose, a job that fulfills them... and they have every intention of getting that. But that's not how the world really works. Sometimes it's just a lot of hard work for very little short-term payoff. Life isn't fair. But telling this to our little monsters usually creates such a stink that it's avoided at all costs.
I'm all for being nice. I'm all for being generous. I think these are fantastic qualities, and I try to be as graceful as I can be. All the time. But some days I just want to say "Someone did you a disservice by making you think the world revolves around you. It doesn't." Now let's have a little moment to deal with that, and let's get back to work!
But that's not done... Go figure.