A Nation Under Sedation: Are we soaking in the warm bath of mediocrity?

Morgan says, 'Get up, Move Faster' (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

This week I had the privilege of being an invited guest at a Wales Management Council debate on whether Wales as a nation lacks ambition, whether the country as a whole is hungry enough for success. 

This question, set by fellow guest Dr Paul Thomas whom many of you will know from his TV series ‘The Business Doctor’, caused, as I’m sure you can imagine a passionate and emotive discussion around the table.  Clearly there is passion in Wales, particularly amongst business leaders and educators it would seem, but what about in the wider populous?  Can we really say that a whole nation lacks ambition without sinking into national cultural stereotyping?  And if we can, what might be the reasons for this mediocrity complex?

That's perhaps a set of questions for another day, as it’s not the purpose of this post to focus on Wales per se.  That's because I believe this is as much a personal issue as a national one, so rather I want to consider what might make individuals and groups be willing to settle for a Status Quo that is not moving them forward in any way.  Why would we be settling for a life of routine comforts instead of looking towards a future that might be brighter in many ways?

This is where the Freudian psychology might come in…Freud’s Pleasure Principle suggests that it is human nature to move away from pain and towards pleasure.  This is not a simple dichotomy, however, as some pleasure is gained through pain...through hard work, through struggle and suffering (those of you who are working towards a major life-goal, a PhD, bringing up children, setting up a business, will know what I mean here).

But what if there is no real pain in our life?  What if it's all pretty comfortable as it is?  What if we know that the safety net of the state will always pick us up if we fall over, and what if moving towards something different, towards a different set of life goals, towards a successful, fulfilling future, actually requires us to go through some of that pain to get there?  This is where inertia sets in.  We settle for the comfort of mediocrity, the restful state, and it seems to me this warm bath of mediocrity is an easy place to be, and for many an easy place to stay.  It's like living under sedation.  

But what kind of life is that?  Is it really so great to stay in your green and pleasant land when there is suffering in the world that you could be helping people out of, where there are challenges and opportunities to make the world a better place - where you can contribute?  What a shame it would be if you died tomorrow and your only contribution to society had been in the form of taxes and putting your small change in a charity box.

One of my favourite phrases in life is ’push on’ – I use it in my self-talk when I know there is pain ahead but it will be worth it.  When I’m walking long distance and we’re nearly at our goal destination for the day, I'll often say ‘let’s push on’ to the next check point – so we’re ahead of ourselves for the next day.  This is about attitude – it is, quite literally, about ‘going the extra mile’.  If you consistently go the extra mile, you can consistently achieve more than you, or those around you, thought possible.  And, if you get exhausted, if you fall down, if you fail…you just take a moment and then you get up and push on again.  

Another of my favourite phrases  is from the movie Robin Hood, Prince of Thieves (yes I know).  In the film, when Robin is knocked down in a fight he asks his friend Azeem (Morgan Freeman) for some advice. Azeem simply says ‘get up; move faster’, and this is what I say to myself whenever I fall down or fail at something.  Just pick yourself up and do it better next time.  We can all do this if we're willing to go through a little short term pain in order to achieve the rewards we dream of, but so many people don't...and if you're one of those who don't...maybe it might be worth jumping in a cold shower for a minute and asking yourself why?

And as for Wales as a nation, I know there are passionate people here, people who want to ‘push on’ just as I do, but there are also a lot of people for whom the Status quo is just too comfortable.  As a nation, perhaps we also need to get out of that warm bath of mediocrity and give ourselves a blast of cold water to get us moving again; we need to listen to Azeem and pick ourselves up and get on with it, quite simply, we need to ‘get up; move faster’.

The Wales Management Council is seeking to raise the voices of business and educators in challenging government to create a Wales that is hungry for success; a Wales that has passion beyond the cultural and sporting fields, that has passion in business too – in short, a Wales that has its ‘hwyl’ back. Being a small nation doesn't mean we have to think small... and so the Council is developing a strategy to engage government and policy-makers on this vision and ambition for excellence in Wales – you can discuss and support the campaign by joining the debate in their LinkedIn group or by following them on Twitter @walesmanagement.

 

Don't quota me...

Theresa May - A positive...and a negative...
does that make her neutral?
Image via Wikipedia

This week we had the pleasure of welcoming a guest speaker from the organisation 'Chwarae Teg' or 'Fair Play' to Swansea Business School for a session on gender equality (or inequality) in business.  Chwarae Teg is an organisation that supports the economic development of women here in Wales, and I can imagine that those of you who are regular readers of this blogs will probably be able to predict that the very fact that this organisation exists annoys the hell out of me...

It probably annoys the hell out of them too.

I hope it does.

Our speaker, Ellie Harwood, was excellent; knowledgeable and balanced, with some excruciating examples of ignorance to share, and I was thoroughly impressed with way Chwarae Teg go about what they do, but I can't help feeling sad that they are seen as necessary.

This session was timely, as you may have seen in the news this week the reporting of the results of the Davies Review of women on boards.  Of course, one might find it ironic that a middle-aged, upper-classed, white male was asked to undertake the review...but one can only assume he was the best candidate for the job...is that right Dave?

As an aside...I find it hilarious that throughout the report Lord Davies himself refers to 'Chairmen' as the people who have to solve the problems.  Old habits run deep eh?

To add to the general farcical nature of the whole review, Theresa May gave a rather confused speech at the launch, which for me, highlighted many of the complexities here.  On her own behalf she championed the cause against so-called positive action, saying she didn't want to to be done any favours because of her gender and wanted to make it on her own merits, but at the same time she was supporting the recommendations of the report which, although it does not directly recommend government sponsored positive discrimination, simply seems to pass the buck to businesses (over to you Chairmen!) by recommending target levels that ought to be achieved.  I have two words on this - cop out.

Another disappointment in the reporting of the results of the review was the BBC's choice to angle the story on the (undisputable but deeply misleading fact) that the number of women on boards is at unprecedented levels.  I have to say I feel this is rather lazy journalism...of course any tiny increase is going to result in 'unprecedented levels', but this is not the story here.  The story is that there's inequality and nobody is dealing with the root causes.

So what is the root cause?  Simple. The issue we all know is there already, and the thing that our speaker from Chwarae Teg highlighted so eloquently this week.  Endemic enculturation and acculturation of gender stereotyping from a very early age.  Education is where we need to start...and not just the education of our children, but education throughout life.  Chwarae Teg are about to start piloting programmes in schools to break down gender stereotyping from a very early age, and I think this is excellent, but we need to do more...and those of us involved in education at University level or in organisational training and development have a role to play here too. But it's not simply about a half day training course on why we're all equal...it's about a culture change...and for that we need role models.  We don't, however, need to parachute these role models onto boards to meet false quotas...we simply have to start with ourselves.  Whether you're a man or a woman you can be a role model on this, just by thinking about the language you use and reflecting on the way you treat people in your workplace.

So, please don't quota me or any other woman onto a board - don't insult me by patronising me in this way.  Just appoint me on the basis of my ability to do a fantastic job, or don't appointment me at all.

My column in the business section of the South Wales Evening Post also addresses this issue this month (out Monday if you're interested) :)

What is it all for? This...

Smiley SMUDGE Enterprise 2012 participants

Last week I had one of the busiest weeks I've ever had in this job - and one of the most satisfying.  It was industry week at the business school and we hosted our Annual St. David's Day lecture (with the wonderful, inspirational, Professor Laura McAllister) and also our 3 day SMUDGE Enterprise bootcamp  - both of which I was engaged in organising and running.

Strangely enough, I was also asked by several people this week what drives me, and why I do this job.  Maybe because they could see me running around like a mad thing trying to get everything done in the (frankly measly allocation of) 24hrs in each day, who knows?  But the question was asked, and this forced me to reflect.  Why do I do this job, when it takes so much out of me?  When I get up at 5am, get to my desk by 7am, work all day without pause until late...go home, work some more, sleep a little and repeat to fade. 

So, for what it's worth, here are my reasons...how do they compare to your reasons for doing your job?

Firstly, I know what it's like to be the underdog - to be the one who feels like an alien in a world of gods and goddesses.  I know what it's like to be surrounded by the privileged and expectant - to be taken advantage of, to be the up-start, Camus's outsider, Kafka's cockroach, Radiohead's Creep.

I also know what it's like to find that you don't have the right connections, the right knowledge, the right look, the right reference points and have to catch up or get around the system despite the standing start.

Finally, I know what it's like to lose everything and have to start from scratch with just a suitcase and new place.

So, for me to see those students who may seem disengaged, marginalised, lacking confidence, frustrated, damaged, angry (the list could go on) throwing themselves into something, buzzing about their ideas, taking part, showing that they can do it and surprising themselves, is such an amazing feeling.  I've had the great privilege of seeing that this week, and I can't keep the smile off my face as a result.

So, I find myself working away here this weekend, but I don't mind, because I know that some good happened this week, and I helped in some small way.  These are my reasons - just in case you're asking...

If you want to see what I'm talking about...take a quick peek at the SMUDGE Enterprise 2012 live blog.

Or the Twitter feed: www.twitter.com/SMUDGE_Ent