The 48 Laws of Power in Practice

Law 41: Avoid Stepping Into a Great Man's Shoes

If you follow in succession to someone very accomplished, you will need to double your efforts to stand out. A more effective strategy is to develop your own way and style of doing things. 

Another interpretation of this law is to break away from the established way of doing things. This way, you are better able to react better to the present moment.

Application —

People who have famous parents often follow in their footsteps. Without having to struggle in life, however, they may lack the same strength of will as their parents. Think of celebrity children. Some of them try to be actors but are overshadowed by the fame of their parents. Like Jaden Smith. Then there are children of celebrities that strike out and become famous in their own right. Dare I say that Kim Kardashian falls in the latter category?

For the second interpretation, think of people working in large bureaucracies, like the DMV or Post Office. There's an order and process that's efficient for processing a high volume of requests. But outside of that, there's not much flexibility.

Every generation rebels against the last. And older generations complain about younger ones because of their differences in values. In observance of the law, this is to be expected. But one day, "Ok, boomer" must just turn into "Riiight, Millennial",

It's Sabotage –

Piled high on all the L-shaped desks all around me were alternating stacks of papers with taped fabric swatches. When I started my first job in the fashion industry, I had no idea what function I was here to do. All the classes I took in textiles science, wholesale sales, and apparel manufacturing management did not prepare me for the reality of an entry-level position.

On the previous Saturday, I was asked to come in for "training". I was to be trained by a more senior coworker who worked on the same account. In half an hour, she showed me how to put together a packet of forms and fabric cuttings that would be submitted for review by a big retailer. In a hollow voice, she kept repeating the phrase "easy peasy lemon squeezy". A phrase that still triggers me today. The problem is I don't have the mind to remember a long series of steps. I'd have just as much luck remembering the street directions to an unfamiliar faraway destination.

I tried to build a logical understanding of the work because knowing what I'm trying to achieve helps me remember what to do. I would ask her to explain the rationale for certain steps. For example, why would we fill out this part and not that one? And why would we need to complete step D before E since they seemed unrelated? The answers were "because that part doesn't need to be filled out". And "because D needs to happen before E". Clear as mud.

I fell flat on my face for the first few weeks. And even cried at work. I couldn't get much help from the senior associate and my boss was too busy. Then one day, I became friendly with a coworker working on a different account. She wasn't afraid to share her knowledge, and things finally clicked for me. Turns out, she was close with my boss and even told her about the inadequate training.

That was when finally I saw the truth. I was a newbie, eager to learn, with no sense for office politics. But to the woman who trained me, I was someone brought in to work on the same account; I was a threat. You'll be wise to realize earlier than I did (when I was almost fired), that you can't count on your predecessor to help you succeed. You must find your own way.