Why the end to the glory days in tech is a great thing
11.18.2022
“The strength of a person’s spirit would then be measured by how much ‘truth’ he could tolerate, or more precisely, to what extent he needs to have it diluted, disguised, sweetened, muted, falsified.”
— Friedrich Nietzsche
This text was copied from an email I sent to my list on November 18, 2022. You can sign up to receive weekly insights on creativity, consciousness and the human spirit at work here.
Lately I've noticed some thought leaders sharing advice in the professional sphere, caveated with, "I'm not going to talk about the layoffs."
I get this, I do—the negative is amplified everywhere, all the time, and I don't want to get stuck there either.
But when I saw an engineer-cum-reporter on Twitter announce that he would no longer share his scoop about impending layoffs, so as to protect people from stress... I was disappointed.
While it sucks to be the bearer of bad news, you cannot be the source of another's pain.
That's in their relationship to reality, and as Nietzsche said, "The strength of a person's spirit [is] measured by how much 'truth' he [can] tolerate." (Kudos to one of my mentors, JP Morgan, for sharing this quote so frequently.)
The recession is happening. Tech layoffs are probably just beginning. Truth hurts.
But it's clean pain.
Have you read the letter from Alphabet investor TCI to Sundar Pichai? It's one cold, hard fact after another, brutal to read... and oddly refreshing, too.
Clean pain is like that. It's sensational, but underneath, there's this feeling of, "Ah, yes. Here it is, at last, that hidden thing I've known for a long time and can no longer avoid."
It's like finally writing that email you've been putting off...
...or receiving a diagnosis after years of feeling crazy.
As any leader knows, it's better to have accurate data than inaccurately 'positive' data. You can only outrun the truth for so long.
Bypassing reality doesn't make it better; it prevents you from embracing opportunity.
I'm not going to put blinders on to the startups that might now struggle to pay me. I think coaching is more useful in times of challenge, and I'm going to speak to that.
Dirty pain, by the way, is anything you do in avoidance of clean pain—often made worse by the fact that you know you're avoiding truth.
In a recession, you can no longer coast in a job that's not suiting you...
Squander company resources on indecision...
Or treat your creativity as anything less than sacred.
It may feel like you're under a massive dark cloud right now, but I assure you, if you can lean into truth—you will find that the silver lining IS the cloud.
What pain have you been avoiding? Where can you be more honest with yourself? What path have you run from taking?
This Sunday, November 20th, I'll be hosting my next group breathwork journey over Zoom. This is an excellent place to tend to the parts of you that feel sad or scared about the state of things. In addition to the usual breathwork format, I'll be guiding a meditation designed specifically to calm your nervous system and connect you to the creativity within. Creativity is your greatest resource now. Use code 'NEWBREATHER' for a first-time discount.
Any questions? I look forward to seeing you there. 💓
Rachel