885 Promoting the success of others

Last night’s discussion at Book Club of Hugh Hewitt’s book In, but not of was quite lively. There were parts of the book which puzzled all of us. His recommendation that a young person aim for Harvard, Yale or Stanford and try to live in New York, Washington DC or LA immediately after college was a bit off-putting for us mid-westerners--even those who had lived in those cities or attended those schools. (Our host had a Harvard alumnus chair, so the leader of the discussion sat in it.)

However, some sections made a lot of sense, regardless of age or career goals. Chapter 19 “Success Is Not Zero-Sum, So Promote the Success of Others” brought out an interesting viewpoint from one of our members who has lived in Africa. The point of the chapter is that if you want to advance in your career, help others advance in theirs.

“There is no denying the fierce competition for entry-level positions in any meritocracy, and elbows can be very sharp indeed. Once you’re inside any door, however, the key to life-long success is a habit of helping other through that very same door or through other portals to opportunity.”

“Promoting rivals? Helping someone who could conceivably edge you out? That’s career suicide, or so you would think. But it’s not. Indeed, at the highest levels it is the mark of the most successful people.”

He provides a caveat--warns against promoting friends just because they are friends. You do not do anyone a favor by recommending him for a job which he can’t perform.

Now back to Africa. The member who had lived in Africa remarked that in her village, if someone did well in school or succeeded in business or got a scholarship to study abroad, they would be verbally attacked and shunned by their neighbors and peers. It was as though everyone had to be at the same low level if they couldn’t all rise together. Even if the successful returnee had much to offer the village. It was the difference between a “community” based value system and a system that values individuality. Now how many times have we heard this trumpeted as being positive? How many times have we heard that every child in the class needs to be honored, not just the ones who excel? Perhaps that cultural pattern is holding back an entire continent.