Interesting Bit of the Day – Peter Principle
A special thanks to David Hauser for finding this one…
The Peter Principle is a concept developed Lawrence J Peter in the 60s as a bit of office humor that states that all employees get promoted higher and higher until they attain a position which they are not suitable for and thus do not get promoted further. Another way to look at it is “If you are not currently in a position which you are incapable of doing, expect further promotion.” Originally humor, this has since been entertained as legitimate observation of the corporate world as well as abstracted to other areas. Read the full concept.
This was interesting for me for a few reasons. I have seen this a lot in most of the jobs I have worked – from Grocery Stores to Universities to Non-Profits to Conglomerates. Essentialy, everyone wants to further their own career – be it for power or a better quality of life. Perhaps it is the Idiocracy of the system: if enough of the upper escehelon gets eroded by incompetence, even the most minimally competent person will like like a genius. This leads me to another interesting concept in the “Related Links” of the Peter Principle -”Negative Selection“. This concept suggests that political Dictators will stock their staff with the people least capable of reamoving him or her from power. This then trickles down through each lower position until you have a pyramid of leadership that is based on complete and utter incompetence. No wonder Dictatorships seldom work.
Anywho, I hope you enjoyed these finds. I am hoping to post something interesting/educational daily to help combat stupidity in our world. Feel free to email me with links you think should be posted.
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About Me
Blaine Garrett is a Minneapolis-based web designer, fine artists, and general jack of all trades. When he is not designing next-generation web applications or feverishly painting away, he dabbles in other creative endeavors as well as enjoying the fruits of the luscious Twin Cities.
