Curious to explore this phenomenon, Redditor A_Bit_Drunk asked strangers on the internet:
"What needs to stop being put on a 'pedestal?'"
The people we look up to shouldn't really think they are above everyone else.
An Act Of Cruelty
"I realized one of the most unkind things I can do to someone is to put them on a pedestal because, inevitably, they're going to do something that's going to knock them off it. Then I am going to have a trouble with it because I needed them to be something else and that's inhumane."
– tool2281
High-Profile Individuals
"Politicians."
"They're selected for a job, and a lot of them do it poorly, but are still treated like celebrities."
"Also celebrities shouldn't be put on a pedestal either."
– Shy_Poke
Influencers
"There are tens of thousands of people that are social media famous that I have no idea who they are and am very happy about it."
Back To When
"In a way it's a return to old times, but in a very different way."
"Modern celebrities required (relatively) modern media for mass distribution to achieve their wide reach. TV and radio turned "the best singer in the village" into 'an international phenomenon.'"
"Now with internet media, we still have the same wide international reach, but because everyone has theoretically equal access to that broad reach, we are back in small communities. But instead of it being the local celebrity of your town, it's the minor celebrity of your tiny-yet-global niche interest."
– maneo
The following people believe we should work to live rather than live for work.
Dedication To A Job
"Giving all and everything to a job. The reality is very few places truly care about employees. Your job is a transactional relationship. You owe them nothing except the hours you work and the jobs you must accomplish during that time. Don't give up your sick days, work for free, or feel you 'owe' them."
- selantra
Raising The Bar
"Giving your all to a job sound like a good way to work yourself to death, if you are aways giving 100% every single day that creates expectations, so chances are, when you inevitably get tired and start to fall back, people will get disappointed."
The Best Questions To Ask During A Job Interview | George Takei’s Oh Myyy
Working To The Limit
"Working to the point of burn out."
"Unfortunately my husband is like this. He's too much of a perfectionist and picks up other people's slack and shortstaffing. It's compounded by the fact that he works with animals, so he's more likely to work himself to death than let anything happen to them."
"Except for maybe Terry the tarantula, according to my husband he's a bit of an a**hole."
The Sacrifices Made
"Sacrificing physical and mental health, leisure, and interpersonal relationships for the sake of work."
Certain behaviors and attitudes were deemed worthy of knocking off a pedestal.
Excessive Drinking
"Getting drunk. Binge Drinking."
"The more you drink, the tougher you are. Taking shots just to prove to others how much you can handle. All to wake up with a nasty hangover the next day."
– LOA4SC
Covering Up Rudeness
"Masking rudeness as 'honesty', and when they say something that hurts someone they are 'just calling a spade a spade'."
Viewing The Disabled
"People treating disabled people like human beings with unique personalities, interests, and aspirations."
"Newsflash! That should be the standard!"
I have to agree with many on the thread who said working too hard was something that shouldn't be on a pedestal.
Sure, work integrity and dedication can get you a promotion or a raise, but in my humble opinion, I believe using all of your extra time and vitality towards impressing the bosses can be detrimental to one's mental well-being.
I have friends in real estate who are very driven. With each closing on a deal, the immediate high only makes them want to push harder for more successful deals.
They would forgo vacations in favor of having more sales under their belt rather than getting stamps on a passport.
At the end of the day, my hard-working friends may be financially well off, but I often wonder what life experiences they would have to show for all the time spent on the field.
But who am I, really, to have such a concern about people's work ethic?
If my friends can say they are "happy" with their life as it is – not having seen the world (outside the pandemic, of course), or spending more time with clients without occasional quality time with family and friends – then we just have different interpretations of whatever happiness means.
And I hope my sentiment didn't come off as someone who is above it all.