Pondering this, I was reminded of a post of mine from 2007, one of the first viral pieces I ever wrote, about Robert Sutton's book No Asshole Rule: Building a Civilized Workplace and Surviving One That Isn't. In that 2007 post I shared how I used Sutton's book to lead a Bible class at my church. Sutton read the post and went on to mention my Bible class in the updated edition of the book. Bob and I shared some cordial emails about my inclusion in the revised edition and he shared an advanced copy of the book with me.
In 2004, Sutton was a Stanford business professor. When asked that year by Harvard Business Review to contribute to its annual edition of "Breakthrough Ideas" Sutton submitted what he called "the no asshole rule" as a guide for leadership, hiring practices, and corporate culture. Upon publishing the rule, Sutton received requests from around the world asking for more detail and sharing stories of about the toll assholes exact in the workplace. He also received confirmation that companies who had implemented some version of the rule experienced boosts in their corporate culture along with their bottom lines. All this inspired Sutton to write The No Asshole Rule: Building a Civilized Workplace and Surviving One That Isn't. The book became a New York Times, Wall Street Journal, and Businessweek bestseller, and has been translated into over twenty languages.
But the most noteworthy thing to know about The No Asshole Rule is that it is the only leadership book I have ever read.
What is "the no asshole rule" and why did it come to mind in light of yesterday's post about stress tests of humility? Again, a stress test for humility is how we treat people of lower status. And that is precisely the topic of Sutton's book. The No Asshole Rule is a meditation on the pernicious effects of hierarchy upon social relations, with a particular eye on how corporate hierarchies create nastiness and abuse in the workplace. For example, how do you identify an asshole? Sutton proposes two tests:
What is "the no asshole rule" and why did it come to mind in light of yesterday's post about stress tests of humility? Again, a stress test for humility is how we treat people of lower status. And that is precisely the topic of Sutton's book. The No Asshole Rule is a meditation on the pernicious effects of hierarchy upon social relations, with a particular eye on how corporate hierarchies create nastiness and abuse in the workplace. For example, how do you identify an asshole? Sutton proposes two tests:
Test One:After talking to the alleged asshole, does the "target" feel oppressed, humiliated, de-energized, or belittled by the person? In particular, does the target feel worse about him or herself?
Test Two:Does the alleged asshole aim his or her venom at people who are less powerful rather than at those people who are more powerful?
Test Two is what came to mind in light of yesterday's post, how we treat people of lower status. As should be obvious, the hierarchical corporate org-chart means that workplace settings are suffused with humility stress tests, as you're constantly dealing with people above or below you in regards to status and power. And it's failures of virtue within this status hierarchy that can make workplaces so oppressive and abusive. Sutton’s "no asshole rule" urges organizations to attend to the toxic relational dynamics that emerge at the intersections of power and status differentials in the workplace.
In many ways, organizational hierarchies are a massive and chronic stress test for the virtue of humility. As Sutton summarizes, "Power breeds nastiness." Consequently, our virtue is tested and revealed within these hierarchies. As Sutton shares, "The difference between how a person treats the powerless versus the powerful is as good a measure of human character as I know."
