 Bertrand Russell Quotes 366 |
But nowadays almost every young man has to begin with a very subordinate post in some vast organisation. His superiors seldom have the tolerance of the experienced schoolmaster and are likely to give promotion to the 'good' boy. Unfortunately docility is not a quality which is often found in the man capable of initiative or leadership.
Source: On being good" in: Mortals and Others; Bertrand Russell's American Essays, 1931-1935, v.1
More info.: https://russell-j.com/BEING-G.HTM
* a brief comment (Translated with DeepL.com)
It would be a good thing if one could live a financially prosperous life on one's own talents alone, without belonging to any organisation. However, such outstanding talent (along with business acumen) is rare.
Whether you are a state official or an employee of a large company, if it is a huge organisation you do not have to worry about bankruptcy, and if you are not concerned about promotion, you can have a stable life with a fair amount of time for yourself. Of course, those people (who do a stable job) are also important for the organisation. However, it is also true that an organisation cannot grow without 10-20% of excellent people. However, in any organisation there is no need for 'sycophants'.