There Ain’t No Pacifists In Boardrooms
Wednesday, June 2nd, 2010 by Mark | Posted in Business, Unconventional Thinking | CommentsEveryone who brags that they are “a pacifist” is really lying.
Pacifism is an intellectual deceit perpetrated by those who want to elevate themselves above the average man or woman. To distance themselves from the Great Unwashed.
To this pretentious class of snobs, anyone who favors war — even in defense of liberty — is too much of a dumb slob to understand the pious sanctity of a blanket refusal to go to war.
Why I say the “pacifists” are lying, is that when an enemy army arrives at their front door, prepared to seize their homes and abscond with their children, they will be the first to call 911– begging the police to dispatch the First Marine Division to their aid.
Pacifism doesn’t hold up when it leaves the debating society or the ivy halls and confronts reality in a dangerous and uncertain world.
There is a different but equally ridiculous form of pacifism in business. I hear it from those who tell me, ever so haughty, that they don’t want to take market share from others. They simply want to keep what they have and allow the others to have theirs.
This never works. Business is a form of war. Every manager who deceives himself into believing that all parties will play fair, should put aside their Nevil Chamberlin Guide To Peace Through Submission, and recognize that sooner or later the “nice firm” across town will be on the march, determined to eat their lunch.
The rule of the jungle, for the survivors that is, is “He who acts first, wins.”
Those sitting on the sidelines pretending that:
* Life is fair
* People will be honorable just because you are
* Kindness can create and enforce a balance of power
Are all delusional. They may trumpet their “pacifism,” but they won’t make it to the boardroom.
Mark Stevens
CEO
MSCO | The Art and Science of Growing Businesses
*Image courtesy of bsabarnowl via Flickr
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June 21st, 2010 at 9:55 am
Very true!