(Beijing, China): Perusing a magazine called “That’s Beijing” in my hotel room, I came across a list of the most popular novels in China for May 2008, as determined by joyo.com, an Internet bookseller. One of the five includes "The Story of La La's Promotion" by Li Ke:
“Spanning eight years, this book tells the story of La La, a typical middle-class worker, (who) is promoted from an entry-level sales manager to an experienced HR manager through personal effort, without any background or connections.”
I haven’t read the book, but had to chuckle that not having to network to get ahead in life could be the premise of a popular novel. But it *is* fiction, I guess, so no less improbable than a professor searching for clues in Leonardo de Vinci paintings while a murderous albino monk runs rampant through France, or an Italian war bride’s affair with a National Geographic photographer passing through her small Iowa town to snap pictures of bridges. As Eddie Murphy said in the movie Trading Places, "This kind of thing happens to me every week."
I know many of my capitalist friends wish for a life like La La’s, where they can be recognized solely on the merits of how hard they work and what they know, rather than who they know, or more importantly, who knows them. A noble dream for sure, but one unlikely to come true any time soon. High competence and expertise in a subject area can get you to a certain point. But it’s your ability to build relationships that will help you break through.
Still, given how popular this novel is in China and the trend for fable-like business books in the U.S., maybe I should try my hand at a networking parable for my next book? Perhaps "Who Deleted My Facebook Page?" or "Adding Friends and Influencing No One."
What do you think?
Hey Liz!
Great post! I know a lot of people who believe they should succeed on merit alone. I think it’s a remnant of the educational system. The real world is *so* not like that!
While the description of the book focuses on La La, it also notes she was promoted – it doesn’t say she promoted herself! For me, that implies she was recognized *by others* for the value she delivered.
So, while merit matters, it’s the value that others gain from one’s talent that leads to success! In our interdependent, social world, success is usually the outcome of making a difference in the lives of others. And building relationships to know, and be known by others, is a critical part of that process!
Sure wish more people would see that the mutual benefit created in relationships is not only the key to success but also to a better quality of life for all concerned!
Posted by: Walter Akana | June 04, 2008 at 03:18 PM