Human god

I used to work in a medium-sized universal bank during the Asian Financial Crisis in 1997. As a direct report to one of the top executives of the company, I have witnessed so many times the arrogance of my former boss. His orders must be followed at all times. He never listened to the suggestions of his peers and subordinates. For him, he was powerful and all-knowing. His position made him self-righteous; he acted and made decisions as if he was a god.

A few years later, our bank was sold and merged with a much bigger bank. As a result of the merger, the bank became bigger and the employee population tripled in numbers. New divisions were created and new groups of well-experienced executives joined the company. My former boss who used to be a big fish in a small pond, shrink quickly in a large ocean. A few months later, he left the company.

Pride can sneak into our lives so easily. We need to be reminded not to think of ourselves more highly than we ought to think. It is easy to become bigheaded when we stay in our own little circles of life. But when we are plunged into a larger situation, with amplified stress, problems, and competition, we realized that no matter how big our stature in life maybe, we are no different from other people around us.

You and me, whether we are white or black, Asian or European, Indian or American…no one is above us, we are all equal… because we are all humans… we should stop acting like gods.

Republished with permission.

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