After reading Elizabeth Wardle’s “Identity, Authority, and
Learning to Write in New Workplaces” I found that in the complex world of workplace dynamics, authority is not suddenly given. Instead, it’s a negotiation within the community that’s being constantly reevaluated.
Alan’s story shows how authority misconceptions can harm professional relationships and performance. Alan’s complacency led to the workplace demanding work to be done by him but instead of complying with his coworkers, he would push away the tasks that he was supposed to complete. This leads to failure in the workplace and jealously between coworkers. Alan’s narrative warns us that workplace power is a shared responsibility. The balance of respect, adaptability, and understanding is tough. This balance is very challenging to maintain but it integral to keeping a fair and calm environment with the least amount of conflict
I feel like we’ve all worked with people like Alan either in school or at our jobs. It makes the workplace feel unfair and leads to you feeling like putting in effort is pointless because the person is abusing their authority. I think Alan’s story is super relatable due to the fact that we all have egos and it’s a tale that we’ve all heard and experienced in some shape or form. I’ve played soccer my whole life and I have also been susceptible to falling into this situation where I’ll have an inflated ego due to coaches putting their trust into me which leads me to becoming laid back and not putting my full effort into practices.
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