Any consideration of the life and larger social existence of the modern corporate man... begins and also largely ends with the effect of one all-embracing force. That is organization - the highly structured assemblage of men, and now some women, of which he is a part. It is to this, at the expense of family, friends, sex, recreation and sometimes health and effective control of alcoholic intake, that he is expected to devote his energies.
About this quote
- What does it mean?
- Modern corporate life is dominated by organization, often at the cost of personal relationships and health.
- In plain terms
- Corporate life consumes your time and energy, leaving little room for family or self-care.
- What can you take from it?
- Organizations demand total devotion, often sacrificing personal well-being.
Where it applies
Putting it to work
Questions to consider
- How much of your life is controlled by your organization?
- Is the trade-off worth it?
Another view
This perspective may not apply to all types of work environments.
More from John Kenneth Galbraith
Wealth, in even the most improbable cases, manages to convey the aspect of intelligence.
Permalink to quote #39 Increasingly in recent times we have come first to identify the remedy that is most agreeable, most convenient, most in accord with major pecuniary or politica…
Permalink to quote #41 Much literary criticism comes from people for whom extreme specialization is a cover for either grave cerebral inadequacy or terminal laziness, the latter bein…
Permalink to quote #38
Related quotes
I put my heart and my soul into my work, and have lost my mind in the process.
Vincent Van GoghVincent Van Gogh quote #45 The rule of my life is to make business a pleasure and pleasure my business.
Aaron BurrAaron Burr quote #1 [F]olks would better off dipping their heads in a bucket of liquid [nitrogen] and battering them against a tree very very hard than reading Baxter's Titan. It …
James NicollJames Nicoll quote #3