The Adult Contract

In Chapter 1, we examined the issue of entitlement and the effect of entitlement on organizations and organization members. Then we discussed “the good news” and introduced the concept of earning cultures as opposed to cultures of entitlement. My experience tells me that people are far happier and productive in an earning environment, in large part because their lives are more purposeful. However, it is not easy to move from an entitlement culture to a culture of earning, and it is likely to create some fear. Let’s face it: any change is a little scary, but particularly when accountability is attached to it.

I think it’s important to address the issue of fear as it relates to making this change. Fear is often associated with anxiety, and I think, in this case, it’s important to differentiate between the two of them. Organizations that are truly fear driven are typically autocratic, top-down cultures where employees are kept in the dark and not engaged. This is sometimes called “mushroom management,” for which I’ve provided a definition from Wikipedia: