Personally, I’ve never claimed to ever be a religious man.  However, as a child, I did enough Sunday School activities to remember Matthew 7:12. “So in everything, do to others what you would have them do to you, for this sums up the Law and the Prophets.”  The Golden Rule, as it’s now called, is something we’ve all learned in some fashion while growing up.  In an attempt to make us more compassionate adults, we were subjected to this rule in many fashions, whether that be in terms of sharing or just helping others in crisis or need.

Why do I bring up this core principle?  Well, I’m going to get on a bit of a soap box, especially about the tech industry as a whole.  For the longest time, we in the information technology sector, have been brought up on the idea that “he with the most information, rules”.  Egos made way to those that, as a measure of job security, hoarded key information and lauded it over those they called coworkers.  Political posturing was and remains rampant in many of our office environments.  However, in recent years, this has started to change.  Cultural movements have started to take root in which the ideals of knowledge sharing and organizational learning reign.

We always see flare ups, especially on social media, about the perceived wrongs individuals and their thoughts have done to other individuals and the brands they represent.  Not a day goes by that there isn’t some sort of ember that flares up into something more than it really needs to be.  The rampant egos involved just make things worse.  I get it.  You want to protect your brand and you want to show the world how much you know.  It’s inherent that you would do that, especially since you represent a brand and you are trying to sell something for that brand.  Pretty much Tech Marketing 101.  What I have a major problem with is when it goes too far.

I always hate having to mute/block someone on my Twitter timeline.  I like to believe I give individuals their fair shake when it comes to the thoughts they manage to post in 140 characters (or 280 for those with the early access).  However, when the discord spills into personal attacks, that’s when the mute/block button usage occurs.  There’s little value to a conversation that turns into a personal attack.  It’s really a shame to see some very smart people that driven by their overly inflated egos resort to having to tear down individuals with opposite viewpoints.

This industry is too full of people like I just described.  The good news is that their day may be drawing to a close.  As mentioned before, there’s cultural movements happening within organizations that are promoting knowledge sharing and organizational learning as core principles.  Within those organizations, the idea that hoarding knowledge over someone else for political gain are a thing of the past.  Individuals are judged against that of their team metrics and this means that every member of that team has to be helping to make everyone on their team better.  I’m reminded of a tweet that I saw from Chris Wahl (I don’t know if he was the exact author, as I don’t see a reference to the quote), “Sharing your knowledge doesn’t put your job at risk; it empowers your team to perform at a higher level.  Iron sharpens iron.”

Back to the Golden Rule.  Ask yourself if you’ve ever helped any coworker with a task and helped transfer knowledge to them to help make them better.   Do you continue to transfer knowledge down to others on your team?  Conversely, do you take knowledge and hold onto it like it’s the secret Coca-Cola formula?  If you do this, I ask whether you want your career to go anywhere.  You are actually doing a disservice to your career in an effort to make yourself feel relevant.  Reciprocity.  You get what you give.  The Golden Rule.  Amazing how career advancement could come from such a simple concept.  Now, drop your ego and go make your teams better.