After yesterday's post about Grand Canyon University, the new college focused on entrepreneurship, my Dad sent me this cartoon. (I don't have the source, but knowing him, it is most likely from The New Yorker)
It was too funny not to share, given the topic of this blog.
Thanks Dad!
P.S. My Dad has read my blog every day since I started with a readership of 2 people. I appreciate it!
Every once in awhile I look at the referral source for visitors to this blog. If they are a result of a Google search, I often find some great sibling sites. I found this wonderful illustration of My private cubicle by Frank Wu from the search "trapped in a cubicle picture." He captures the angst some of us have felt while trapping ourselves within a cube!
Also great is his Fighting for the corner office.
Keep up the great work Frank, you have real talent!
In his gripping post Death by Cubicle, Matthew Sheahan captures the spirit, mood, despair and insanity felt by some people trapped inside Cubicle Nation. Exerpts:
"Sometimes I think that I will suffer a death by cubicle. Not that the place where I work presents any mortal danger. If the walls of my cubicle collapsed and fell on top of me I would be able to escape without any serious injury. I could probably survive a fall from a nearby window if I had to jump during a bad fire. I might land on the homeless couple that camps out underneath one of the boss’s windows. No, what I mean is that working in the regular working world will eat away at my heart and soul to the point that I will either take my own life in a spectacular way or I will finally submit to the life of a corporate drone, a condition worse than death."
"One of my co-workers was fired last year. It was a big shock to me, seeing as she had been there for about six years and was a consistent and good worker. I have kept in touch with her, and she told me that getting fired was the best thing that could have happened to her. She started her own jam company as a hobby a few years ago, and has been working harder at it since being fired. While her firing causes me to live in constant fear of losing my job, it also leaves me longing. If she can get fired and land on her feet doing something she loves, then what’s stopping me? Maybe financial stability is a small price to pay for happiness and/or sanity."
Matthew is a journalist, so his writing is very good. But perhaps my favorite part of the whole thing is a comment at the end of his post:
"i do believe your daydreams may come true if somone from "the office" reads your latest column. best of luck!"
My friend Michael cracked me up with this sign-off after he read this blog ...
CUBA LIBRE!
Translated from Spanish, it means "Free Cuba," and I believe it refers to the fight for Cuban independence. Although I don't drink, I know it is also a mixture of rum and coke. I feel it is a very appropriate war cry for this blog. May you be free from your "cuba" in the new year. No offense Fidel!
A short search on Google led me to a tribe of Cubicle Nation inhabitants. In their words,
"For the denizens of the millions of beige boxes around the world. Like mice in lab cages, neatly laid out side by side, you will find us. We have photos of our families and pets hung with small pins on the bland fabric walls. A small toy or two sits next to the computer monitor. We can hear each other's phone conversations, and when something of interest happens nearby, our heads pop up like a giant corporate whack-a-mole game. We are...
CUBICLE NATION. "
A few sample comments reinforce my belief that for some, survival strategies are akin to putting lipstick on a pig.
Mon, September 27, 2004 - 12:18 PM
Cubicle decor
So what do you add to your beige cell to make it more homey?
I have little goodies like toy cars, a statue of Gutenberg, a miniature of the chopping block used to behead Henry's wives (that makes me smile when I think of some folks here), photos of my cats and my hubby, some peacock feathers in a vase, a picture of the two of us drinking wine in Germany, a mosaic pencil holder...lots of paper and crap.
(Notice that the "lots of paper and crap" is the actual work that she is paid to do inside the cubicle.)
Sat, August 21, 2004 - 6:00 PM
Wasting away in Cubeville
There must be millions of us out there; mouse-clicking, paper-stacking, fresh-air-yearning drones of The Great Hive. Our walls are beige, our carpets are grey. We are ... cubicle nation.
Sat, August 21, 2004 - 8:03 PM
Re: Wasting away in Cubeville
LOL! Hey...I can go a step further...mine is in the basement of the building!
I have been doing a lot of thinking about my ideal client these days as I ponder the next phase of my business.
After simmering on this for the last couple of weeks, it suddenly hit me:
I want to free the prisoners of Cubicle Nation!
Cubicle Nation was not even a term that I knew of consciously before this afternoon. It just came to me as I was walking my six-month old son around the house to put him to sleep. I was suddenly overcome by the feeling of the oppressive, constraining, crazy-making environment of many corporations today. I thought about the people that, like myself, know how to thrive in those environments, but by doing so feel their creative soul and spirit sucked dry.
I am getting clearer on the profile of someone in this situation. Can you relate?
I know these people are out there because I have run into them for years in corporations across America! They want to make a change but are terrified to actually do it.
There are many people inside corporations that feel energized, motivated and happy with their jobs. More power to them!
But for those that have never quite "fit in" and feel the oppressive, Big Brother-like dread of working in Cubicle Nation, I think we have some juicy possibilities here!
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