Hmmm….today I am reading with confusion an article at msn online about CEO pay and ‘what the little guy can do to correct it’. Huh??? (as Ophelia would say!)
As I read the article, it was not the CEO perks that surprised, annoyed or shocked me; it was the vehemence and bitterness with which the article was written. I was just shaking my head, thinking this is just more of the indoctrination of lack, poverty and ‘heroic little guy’ garbage that we get fed every day in every way.
The article lists the top 5 CEO pay packages, including stock options taken, and goes on to tell us how we can FIGHT such inequities. I quote: “What’s worse? The CEOs don’t seem to see anything wrong with that type of compensation.” It goes on to tell us how we can take steps to help reform such a system. To read the article click here.
I read those pay packages and I thought ‘woohooooo! If I did the same things those guys did I could reach my $500 million goal in just TWO YEARS!!’ This shines for me like a beacon of what is possible…of course there are myriad ways to reach my goal and being the CEO of Yahoo isn’t one that I will choose, but it’s there, and it’s possible. I am fascinated that I do not find these pay packages maddening, as so many people seem to. I also know that I may receive some flack for writing about NOT being mad, because I used to think this way. Now all I see is the ‘little guy’ whining instead of pulling up his own damn socks and learning how to make some more money himself.
STOP LOOKING AROUND AND FINDING OTHERS TO BLAME AND COMPLAINING ABOUT HOW UNFAIR THINGS ARE. Each of us is responsible for our own lives – our own health, our own finances, and our own financial compensation. Don’t like it? FIX IT. Improve your skills, your knowledge and your options, and stop complaining about what everyone else is getting. There is more than enough of everything for everyone. Sheesh.
May 15th, 2007 at 11:13 pm
Shauna,
I’m with you! Sure, these salaries may seem over the top to some people, but that is only because most people are coming from a position of scarcity when they level those types of judgments on others. I guarantee you that not very many people who are MAKING that kind of money are complaining about other people who are also doing it.
Personally, sign me up! I’m all for believing that it’s possible to make that kind of green, and I’m also for stamping out scarcity and lack mentalities!
May 16th, 2007 at 7:47 am
Good grief – I skimmed the article and immediately saw exactly what you found.
I don’t spend time on msn, so it may be a regular feature, but the “email your comments” feature is ridiculous. Are they that afraid of people who publically disagree with them?
Geesh – on all counts.
May 16th, 2007 at 8:45 am
Yay! Glad I’m not the only one who saw this….I was talking to Ophelia last night and telling her how grateful I am for her, becasue otherwise I might think I’m CRAZY when everyone else seems to think just like the author of this article…:)
You guys are awesome. Aaron, how did I know you’d agree with me?…;)
May 24th, 2007 at 2:24 am
Not from my direction, you won’t.
Envy drives attitudes like the columnist has. Envy also drives politics, which leads politicians to listen to the whiners and suck up to them. Think some CEO earns too much? Call your congressman!
I’m with you–quit whining about it and learn to go out and make 1/4 of a billion dollars yourself! We’d all be better off, eh?
May 24th, 2007 at 8:00 am
YES!!!!!!!!