Becoming an Asshole

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I’ve been reading Apple in China by Patrick McGee.

There’s this part in there where he’s talking about a guy who worked for Apple and was known for being ruthless, stopping at nothing to negotiate the best deal for Apple. He was so aggressive yet convincing that suppliers often found themselves faced with regret, wondering how they got talked into a deal that in hindsight was not in their best interest.^[1]

One particular Apple executive sourced in the book noted how there are companies who don’t employ questionable tactics to gain an edge, but most of them don’t exist anymore. To paraphrase: “I worked with two kinds of suppliers at Apple: 1) complete assholes, and 2) those who are no longer in business.”

Taking advantage of people is normalized in business on account of it being existential, i.e. “If we don’t act like assholes — or have someone on our team who will on our behalf^[1] — we will not survive!” In other words: All’s fair in self-defense.

But what’s the point of survival if you become an asshole in the process?

What else is there in life if not what you become in the process?

It’s almost comedically twisted how easy it is for us to become the very thing we abhor if it means our survival.

(Note to self: before you start anything, ask “What will this help me become, and is that who I want to be?”)