Nepotized

Here’s some more work advice:

If you’re ever in a work situation where there’s any hint of nepotism going on, you’re fucked. Start planning your exit strategy as soon as you find out it exists.

Nepotism goes something like this:

A man works his way up to the top of a company. Once he gets there, he hires his shockingly untalented son—a young man who attended a mediocre school, earned a mediocre degree, and, since birth, exhibited no appreciable talent at anything other than playing video games and worshipping professional wrestlers. The son works at the company for a few years, then gets promoted to a position where he’s got some authority and influence.

The son reaches this point because there’s nothing anyone can do about it. In open competition, he wouldn’t even have a job in this particular industry, but nepotism is his salvation. For years, he’s left alone to do his thing, and everyone in the company works around him. He’s not going anywhere—he’s a tick that can’t be extracted—so everyone figures the prudent course of action is to allow him to head a toothless department where he’ll do the least amount of damage.

Meanwhile, since nobody’s ever told him he sucks, he never hears the truth about his work. He thinks he’s good. He believes he’s earned his position. This is where he becomes dangerous. He’s delusional enough to consider himself the peer of others in his department who’ve actually put in the work to get where they are, and he starts making suggestions regarding the direction of the company.

And there’s nothing anyone can do about it, because although we all know why he’s there, he can’t be moved.

This always happens at the expense of people who actually know what they fuck they’re doing. You’re competent, and you work hard at what you do, but when you look up the ladder, you see the upper echelons clogged with boobs like this guy—and you know you’re going no further.

If you ever see this shit going on at work, run like the wind. I did, and I’m much better for it.