I was recently working on a big global project commissioned by this giant international FMCG Company.
This morning, while we are having the briefing meeting with our clients, I had moment of clarity – everyone who was in this room looked all so serious and important, all those fancy presentations slides, impressive figures, complex analysis and unbeatable titles … but all of this still only comes down to one simple thing – how to squeeze more money out of the consumers in every possible way!
If it’s such a simple thing, why did everyone look SO serious as if they were involved in a ‘life or death’ decision? So, let’s talk about the ‘importance’.
Are these ‘big shots’ that important? It seems they are – traveling all around the world on nothing less than business class and 5 star hotels; luxury cars and big houses; desirable salaries and bonuses (you are eyeing that corporate ladder, aren’t you!)… The list will go on and on. But, all of this is not the kind of ‘importance’ we are talking about. In fact, their importance is only ‘relative’. They are only important to others, in other words, others made them important. Their decisions, big or small, will directly or indirectly affect other people in the organization, especially people with less power and control. These decisions might impact someone’s yearly traveling plans or someone’s decision of putting their kids in a public school or private school. It is that literal.
Does the ‘position’ make someone important? Yes and no. Yes – a decision could make millions of dollars and it also could make the organization lose millions of dollars by a single misjudgment or big-headed-self-indulgence or pure ignorance. The position also has power that determines who gets what or who is not getting what. But, without that position, they are nothing but empty.
Does the ‘international working experience’ make them important? Yes? I don’t know. How important are these so called ‘working experiences’? Apart from making the resume look good, does it make you a better person? Who do you want to impress? Will these experiences help you understand who you are and what you are made of? Is this the only way to prove yourself?
And the saddest thing is, most of us have been put up to these positions without thinking much, we roll and roll like a machine and we are so conditioned by the way it is. And other times, we either have no choice or very little choice. We’re stuck in this vacuum-like hemisphere. We are serving these positions, money-making machines and endless greediness.
Yes, I finally understood what is meant by ‘Big corporations are the big money-making machine’ and in that perceptive, we are the soulless servants who think we are so damn important.
My questions to whoever is working for these big corporations; are you truly respected by your co-workers? Do you really love your job and what you do? What is the meaning of your job apart from the big paycheck? And, do you deserve it?
Finally – are you all that important?
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