July 8th, 2008 by
Chris Harris
There is an interesting post in the New York Times about Google day care. Getting everything you ask for is a problem, once you get used to it. As human beings we just don’t seem to be that well suited to being super comfortable. Sadly, it tends to make us worse in all the ways that really matter.Janet Ray-Dupree also wrote a great column about the duality of those who have a mindset that’s open to growth vs. protecting one’s reputation. The results are predictable, but worth focusing on for a few minutes, especially in the context of the Google story. Intellectual classism is just as harsh a cultural weapon as any other kind of social division. It requires drawing a line in the sand between those who are in teh club and those who aren’t. Those who obtain membership have to be treated special - and there is always a growing fringe who feels it necessary to further cement their membership by ostracizing those who lack membership. Machiavelli wrote that it is better to be feared than loved, perhaps these people are just taking a page from The Prince?Google is an amazing company, I know super smart people work there who I respect a lot, and their engineering skills are beyond reproach. However, I’ve always thought that the most interesting inflection point in Google’s history will be the day that things stop going their way.
This post is particularly timely for me because a few friends of mine have come to me within the last couple months asking me if the culture of Google is really something they are interested in joining. Once Google stops losing the ability to snap up the smartest and most motivated people, they’re clearly headed in the wrong direction. It will be interesting to watch the next year or two at Google.
Posted in Ethics, Psychology | 
