I’ve known people who can’t stand stasis. They resign from good jobs and jump into others, presumably because they’ll have new opportunities and make more money, but really because they’ll work in a new facility, meet new people, and have a different boss—maybe one who’ll treat them better.
These are the same people who keep moving to new neighborhoods because their house isn’t big enough, isn’t properly appointed or, maybe, they can’t stand their neighbors.
These people tend not to stay married very long, either. They think divorce is the hottest thing on wheels. There’s always another partner out there somewhere who’s more compatible with them in terms of moral or ethical outlook or who’s better or, at least, different in the sack.
At a minimum they have to sell their car and buy a new one every two years. They read up on vehicles on consumer-related sites on the Internet to make sure the new car meets their requirements.
The reason I bring this up is that I’m not altogether sure I believe stasis exists—I mean I’m not sure things ever really stay the same. But I’ll give the movers one thing; they speed up the process.
I found a job and had no idea how long it’d last. In fact, they threatened to lay me off after two years. If I’d been a mover, I’d already have been gone. I probably should have taken the layoff and looked for another job elsewhere. What did I do? To remain with that company I took a twenty-percent pay cut to perform far-less-pleasant duties—all so I didn’t have to look for another job.
But you know something? Things changed anyway. Yes. I was still at the same company but I had a different job and made a different salary. Also, that company was small. But within a few years it merged with a larger firm and the corporate culture changed as a result.
For example, when I came on board I wore a suit to work. Then only company officers wore suits—not peons like me. I wore slacks, a dress shirt, and tie instead. Then, in a few years we began observing “dress-down” Friday; we wore a tie only four days a week. Shortly thereafter, we began dressing down every day of the week.
The culture changed the way people smoked, too. In the beginning, you could smoke at your desk. Then you had to go to a designated smoking room to light up. Finally, smokers were banished from the building altogether.
The point I’m trying to make here is that things do change around you even if you give in to inertia and do nothing about it.
During my time at the company I saw people arrive, dig in, climb the ladder, depart. They married, divorced, remarried, and conducted assignations. And I walked past more than a few caskets during those years. So there were plenty of changes--you just had to be patient.
These are the same people who keep moving to new neighborhoods because their house isn’t big enough, isn’t properly appointed or, maybe, they can’t stand their neighbors.
These people tend not to stay married very long, either. They think divorce is the hottest thing on wheels. There’s always another partner out there somewhere who’s more compatible with them in terms of moral or ethical outlook or who’s better or, at least, different in the sack.
At a minimum they have to sell their car and buy a new one every two years. They read up on vehicles on consumer-related sites on the Internet to make sure the new car meets their requirements.
The reason I bring this up is that I’m not altogether sure I believe stasis exists—I mean I’m not sure things ever really stay the same. But I’ll give the movers one thing; they speed up the process.
I found a job and had no idea how long it’d last. In fact, they threatened to lay me off after two years. If I’d been a mover, I’d already have been gone. I probably should have taken the layoff and looked for another job elsewhere. What did I do? To remain with that company I took a twenty-percent pay cut to perform far-less-pleasant duties—all so I didn’t have to look for another job.
But you know something? Things changed anyway. Yes. I was still at the same company but I had a different job and made a different salary. Also, that company was small. But within a few years it merged with a larger firm and the corporate culture changed as a result.
For example, when I came on board I wore a suit to work. Then only company officers wore suits—not peons like me. I wore slacks, a dress shirt, and tie instead. Then, in a few years we began observing “dress-down” Friday; we wore a tie only four days a week. Shortly thereafter, we began dressing down every day of the week.
The culture changed the way people smoked, too. In the beginning, you could smoke at your desk. Then you had to go to a designated smoking room to light up. Finally, smokers were banished from the building altogether.
The point I’m trying to make here is that things do change around you even if you give in to inertia and do nothing about it.
During my time at the company I saw people arrive, dig in, climb the ladder, depart. They married, divorced, remarried, and conducted assignations. And I walked past more than a few caskets during those years. So there were plenty of changes--you just had to be patient.
