A Punk Rockers Guide to Surviving Corporate America
Somewhere around the age of 12, I discovered skateboarding and its accompanying culture of punk music. New wave and alternative records blew my mind and changed the way I experienced life and became the lens through which I viewed everything. I knew instantly I was no longer so alone and I felt at home listening to those songs back then.
For the most part, as a kid growing up I considered most professional people to be lame-ass squares who’d sold out to the man for money. It only took a handful of years working blue-collar jobs making little money for ass-busting work before I realized that I could be OK selling out and sitting in the air conditioning and earning enough to not stress out all the time about whether or not I could pay my bills.
In my mid-20’s I started to get jobs that were slightly more professional and I found it hard to fit in and feel like I was a part of something, even though there was so much about those workplace cultures that made me feel itchy. How could I fit in and feel a part of and yet maintain some sense of identity?
As it turns out, I couldn’t. I got lost for a few years and wore khakis and button-downs and fuckin loafers and if you wear that stuff currently and love it, that’s great. Zero judgment. But I was doing it for the wrong reasons. I wore that shit in hopes of fitting in or flying under the radar so no one would notice me because I rarely felt competent to have the jobs I did. That’s alright though. I eventually got comfortable enough in my own skin to wear what I wanted to wear without thinking that it mean something. It’s just fucking clothes.
Anyway, if you’re a punk kid moving into a more professional working environment and you’re feeling a little iffy about the whole thing, here are some survival tips for saving your sanity, maintaining your personal integrity, and hopefully thriving.
Be yourself. In small ways, if you absolutely can’t in more natural ways
Challenge the status quo. Not just to be contrarian, but to sincerely offer help and create a positive impact.
Create your own approach, processes, and systems from a new, fresh angle. Just because things have always been done a certain way, take the time to ask why and make sure the old way is still the best way.
Figure out your strengths and weaknesses early and play to them. If it feels like you’re swimming upstream, you probably are. It’s not supposed to be so hard.
Fuck what everyone else is doing. It doesn’t matter and comparison is the thief of joy.
Allow others to be who they are and hold your judgment. Just cause someone wants to wear a 3-piece suit doesn’t mean you need to be self-righteous about your hoodie and vegan shoes.
Be open to learning from everyone! Punk rockers hang with nerds and junkies and skaters and mod kids. Work with and be friends with smart, kind, and generous people no matter who or what they are.
Find your clique. Not so you can be socially elitist, but so you have a support system. People you can trust and talk to and bounce ideas off.
Trust your integrity. If someone doesn’t want to hire you because you don’t look a certain way, trust that it’s likely not the best job for you. If you’re only focused on money or other ego-feeding elements of a job, then you’re already headed for a disappointing ride.
There is no need to wear your personality like a battle flag. Be you, but don’t feel like you have to rub it in everyone’s face. No one gives a shit. Being “you” is for you, not for them.
