My father made a crack comment that I thought was very profound:
She has trouble juggling her roles.
I won’t go into why he said it, it’s not that kind of blog.
But his point was very well taken.
When you have different roles in life, different behavior may be expected depending on who you are interacting with.
When interacting with a coworker, your boss or your employees, different types of behavior - roles, will be expected.
A father and mother at home will have one role relating to the children, and another relating to each other.
They say power corrupts, and I think those who have a lot of power in their work role are those who are most likely to misuse that power in their personal lives. They expect a certain efficiency and they expect being deferred to. When that isn’t afforded, they might react like a boss. That could go very wrong. A family member is unlikely to put up with that kind of crap. Unless it’s a very young and pliable wife/boytoy. Hmm, bad idea, come to think of it…
Think about celebrities who start believing in their own hype? Same thing. I know a lot of celebrities (most of them minor or niche). I’ve seen situations where a celebrity behaves badly towards the people around them, especially the fans. Lack of respect. I’ve also seen some of the sweetest, most down to earth people who have ‘made it’. It all depends on how they tackle their role, and how they behave towards other people.
Some of these celebrities are friends, and some I’ve only talked to in passing. What I’ve found, is that the older they are, the more likely it is that they have come to terms with being a celebrity. The more secure they are in their role and as persons, the more they give of themselves to others. I’m not saying all younger celebrities are stuck up, though, because that’s definitely not true.
But this little missive is to all of us.
Our behavior towards people around us will have to be determined by our respective roles - in that situation.
Eh, after I’ve said all that, just so nobody misunderstands:
If you are a celebrity, you’ll get a lot more service and long term popularity if you don’t go all diva. Try to retain a down to earth attitude, and show gratitude and respect towards people you meet. Don’t throw tantrums if you don’t get what you want and deserve. You’ll look like a spoiled brat. And no matter how popular you are at the moment, there are people who have a long memory and who will wait until the press has been oversaturated. Then they will tear you down.
Just basic horse sense, dressed up in fancy words, eh?