The Myth of Self-Reliance: An encounter with Emerson’s essays
This is going to sound terrible to some but as someone who believes strongly in self-reliance, I get a little giddy when I see anti-self-reliance commentary get promoted in the media. It's the same feeling when I see advocates pushing shorter work weeks, more time off, more lax leave policies, and so on.<p>Why do I like these things if I disagree with them? Because it's convincing people they shouldn't have to work as hard as me! Which is making me so, so valuable to companies. My compensation is shooting up like a rocket. And I'm no workaholic either. I put in a solid 50 or so hours a week and take vacations and occasional personal days. I still ask for help when I need it. Yet, I'm becoming more and more of a rarity in the modern workforce.<p>This is going to get me downvoted, but I thought it was valuable to share my perspective. I suspect others are the same as me and are secretly cheering for people to buy into the notion that they aren't personally responsible for their success. We'll pick up the slack. ;)