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← People and their mental models

Ed Zitron's mental models

2 claims Ed Zitron made fit 1 mental model. Most often: Incentives. Everything they said here.

Models we see in what they say

Our reading: their claim applies the idea without naming it. The claim is theirs; filing it here is ours.

Incentives

Look at what people are rewarded for; it explains more behaviour than what they say, your own included.

Used by 84 others

The modern executive is symbolic: what gets rewarded is the appearance of doing work rather than any output anyone can measure.

  1. Ed Zitron Writer and public-relations executive We live in the era of the symbolic executive, when "being good at stuff" matters far less than the appearance of doing stuff, where "what's useful" is dictated not by outputs or metrics that one can measure but rather the vibes passed between managers and executives that have worked their entire careers to escape the world of work. The Era Of The Business Idiotwheresyoured.at · 21 May 2025All korrents from this piece
    Their wordsWe live in the era of the symbolic executive, when "being good at stuff" matters far less than the appearance of doing stuff, where "what's useful" is dictated not by outputs or metrics that one can measure but rather the vibes passed between managers and executives that have worked their entire careers to escape the world of work.

    ↗The Era Of The Business Idiotwheresyoured.at

    21 May 2025

The chief executive is no longer a leadership role but a figurehead measured only on growing the company’s market capitalisation.

  1. Ed Zitron Writer and public-relations executive The Chief Executive — who makes over 300 times more than their average worker — is no longer a leadership position, but a kind of figurehead measured on their ability to continually grow the market capitalization of their company. The Era Of The Business Idiotwheresyoured.at · 21 May 2025All korrents from this piece
    Their wordsThe Chief Executive — who makes over 300 times more than their average worker — is no longer a leadership position, but a kind of figurehead measured on their ability to continually grow the market capitalization of their company.

    ↗The Era Of The Business Idiotwheresyoured.at

    21 May 2025