I worked in corporate America for 30 yrs, in Human Resources and/or “Diversity” . The myth of America being a meritocracy is instilled in every American. Work hard, be a team player, and you too can be CEO, or partner, or…
If anyone dares to say that meritocracy is a myth, they are labeled a trouble maker and put on the layoff list.
If you are female, learn to play golf so you will be a better team player.
If you are “of color”, volunteer for visible projects on top your workload. Be president of the employee resource group.
If those activities don’t get you promoted, “there is something wrong with you,” and you will be sent to an efficacy class (you still have to do your full time job) to “fix” you.
None of those things worked, you are now 50 yrs old at the top of the pay scale, you are laid off and can’t find a job. You lose your health insurance. You lose your house. You are “over qualified” for every job. But be grateful that you had a “career” with x company. It was your fault that the meritocracy didn’t work for you. But hey- be grateful.
Thank you for another great post. I also touch on the myth of meritocracy in a recent post.
“Shame and Blame: The Dual Dangers of Meritocratic Ideology
The myth of meritocracy is seductive: work hard, and you'll succeed. It's the American Dream packaged and sold to millions. But this seemingly fair belief system carries hidden dangers.
At its core, the meritocracy myth suggests that success is purely a result of individual effort and talent. Sounds fair, right? But it ignores the complex web of social, economic, and historical factors that shape our opportunities and challenges.
This belief system creates a double-edged sword:
– Shame: When we don't "make it," we internalize the failure. If success is solely about merit, then our struggles must be our fault. This leads to a spiral of self-blame, obscuring larger systemic issues.
– Blame: Those who succeed often believe they've earned their position through merit alone. This can breed a lack of empathy and justify inequality. "If I made it, why can't they?" Conversely, struggling groups might scapegoat others, mistakenly blaming "bad other" groups for their difficulties.”
I have had to work hard in recent years to overcome the socially mandated shame I was/am saddled with. I should be doing more as a parent. I should have done it differently when they were younger.
I should have made different choices, somehow been more motivated to find employment which made me more financially successful.
The key for me was to realize something stupidly simple- I have a different idea of what success looks like. My kids talk to me about what’s going on with them, we laugh and like each other. I am proud of that. I have a job that I do not take home with me, and can (for now) pay the bills.
There are lots of things I could have done to have made us richer, but who would I be, how would I be living, would I laugh as much?
I don’t want to subscribe to someone else’s idea of success anymore- particularly now that it is clearer than ever who exactly profits from that subscription and from the guilt and shame of my failure.
normally I'm on board with you but I would argue the kind of "gratitude" where you boastfully thank Jesus at an awards ceremony or like that terrible christofascist Harrison Butker for "gods Blessings" isn't real gratitude, its egotism and narcissm masquerading as gratitude, it's a prosperity gospel mentality. Meditating on the ways in which you are fortunate in the context of the randomness and unfairness of the universe helps you remember that its only a little bad luck that separates you from the homeless or disabled so maybe you should work for a world where thats not true.
I think the line between gratitude and boasting is often pretty thin, even in somewhat innocuous contexts like book acknowledgements though. It is not real gratitude? or is gratitude in our culture framed in such a way that it has some downsides?
I have long covid and the program I was in told us if we changed our attitude, long covid would vanish. Our nervous system would calm down. If the long covid symptoms didn’t magically vanish, it was because we weren’t grateful enough for what we do have. 🤦🏾♀️
that's really horrible. You see this a lot with cancer discussions too; the idea that positive thinking can somehow banish disease. It's really horrible.
I have Long Covid, too. The amount of bullsh-t that gets thrown at us! I’m so sorry your program basically consisted of Magical Thinking. Being grateful I’m alive does nothing to alleviate my symptoms. It won’t suddenly grant me the energy to play with my daughter.
Here’s one more aspect of meritocracy myth-making we often overlook: Marketing eats merit for breakfast. In other words success is more predicated on self-promotion than actual achievement.
Earth, Wind and Fire had the right idea about what gratitude really is. After they hit it big with "That's The Way Of The World" and the #1 hit "Shining Star" in 1975, they released the album and song "Gratitude" in 1976 as a way of thanking their new fans. There aren't too many other groups that would do that...
So, as a writer and person, I feel I should be supportive of anyone who is willing to support me, and I hope I can accomplish that.
I worked in corporate America for 30 yrs, in Human Resources and/or “Diversity” . The myth of America being a meritocracy is instilled in every American. Work hard, be a team player, and you too can be CEO, or partner, or…
If anyone dares to say that meritocracy is a myth, they are labeled a trouble maker and put on the layoff list.
If you are female, learn to play golf so you will be a better team player.
If you are “of color”, volunteer for visible projects on top your workload. Be president of the employee resource group.
If those activities don’t get you promoted, “there is something wrong with you,” and you will be sent to an efficacy class (you still have to do your full time job) to “fix” you.
None of those things worked, you are now 50 yrs old at the top of the pay scale, you are laid off and can’t find a job. You lose your health insurance. You lose your house. You are “over qualified” for every job. But be grateful that you had a “career” with x company. It was your fault that the meritocracy didn’t work for you. But hey- be grateful.
Thank you for another great post. I also touch on the myth of meritocracy in a recent post.
“Shame and Blame: The Dual Dangers of Meritocratic Ideology
The myth of meritocracy is seductive: work hard, and you'll succeed. It's the American Dream packaged and sold to millions. But this seemingly fair belief system carries hidden dangers.
At its core, the meritocracy myth suggests that success is purely a result of individual effort and talent. Sounds fair, right? But it ignores the complex web of social, economic, and historical factors that shape our opportunities and challenges.
This belief system creates a double-edged sword:
– Shame: When we don't "make it," we internalize the failure. If success is solely about merit, then our struggles must be our fault. This leads to a spiral of self-blame, obscuring larger systemic issues.
– Blame: Those who succeed often believe they've earned their position through merit alone. This can breed a lack of empathy and justify inequality. "If I made it, why can't they?" Conversely, struggling groups might scapegoat others, mistakenly blaming "bad other" groups for their difficulties.”
https://paultshattuck.substack.com/p/from-personal-pain-to-collective
I have had to work hard in recent years to overcome the socially mandated shame I was/am saddled with. I should be doing more as a parent. I should have done it differently when they were younger.
I should have made different choices, somehow been more motivated to find employment which made me more financially successful.
The key for me was to realize something stupidly simple- I have a different idea of what success looks like. My kids talk to me about what’s going on with them, we laugh and like each other. I am proud of that. I have a job that I do not take home with me, and can (for now) pay the bills.
There are lots of things I could have done to have made us richer, but who would I be, how would I be living, would I laugh as much?
I don’t want to subscribe to someone else’s idea of success anymore- particularly now that it is clearer than ever who exactly profits from that subscription and from the guilt and shame of my failure.
normally I'm on board with you but I would argue the kind of "gratitude" where you boastfully thank Jesus at an awards ceremony or like that terrible christofascist Harrison Butker for "gods Blessings" isn't real gratitude, its egotism and narcissm masquerading as gratitude, it's a prosperity gospel mentality. Meditating on the ways in which you are fortunate in the context of the randomness and unfairness of the universe helps you remember that its only a little bad luck that separates you from the homeless or disabled so maybe you should work for a world where thats not true.
I think the line between gratitude and boasting is often pretty thin, even in somewhat innocuous contexts like book acknowledgements though. It is not real gratitude? or is gratitude in our culture framed in such a way that it has some downsides?
I have long covid and the program I was in told us if we changed our attitude, long covid would vanish. Our nervous system would calm down. If the long covid symptoms didn’t magically vanish, it was because we weren’t grateful enough for what we do have. 🤦🏾♀️
that's really horrible. You see this a lot with cancer discussions too; the idea that positive thinking can somehow banish disease. It's really horrible.
Sorry you went through that! Abusive and unscientific.
I have Long Covid, too. The amount of bullsh-t that gets thrown at us! I’m so sorry your program basically consisted of Magical Thinking. Being grateful I’m alive does nothing to alleviate my symptoms. It won’t suddenly grant me the energy to play with my daughter.
Here’s one more aspect of meritocracy myth-making we often overlook: Marketing eats merit for breakfast. In other words success is more predicated on self-promotion than actual achievement.
Earth, Wind and Fire had the right idea about what gratitude really is. After they hit it big with "That's The Way Of The World" and the #1 hit "Shining Star" in 1975, they released the album and song "Gratitude" in 1976 as a way of thanking their new fans. There aren't too many other groups that would do that...
So, as a writer and person, I feel I should be supportive of anyone who is willing to support me, and I hope I can accomplish that.