Real Power vs. Status Symbols

"Why are affluent people more susceptible to luxury beliefs? They can afford it. And they care the most about status."--Rob Henderson's Newsletter

Stages of Power

A friend sent me a stimulating article this morning titled "Luxury Beliefs Are Status Symbols." I say stimulating because it served as a catalyst to ignite other thoughts I've had in the past and their connections to books and articles I've read. 

The premise of this article is that the things that used to confer status on elites has changed over time. It used to be goods that conferred status. The biggest yacht, the biggest house (or most houses), having servants--all of these things were designed to let people know, "We're not like other people. We're in a different class. We're more important." 

Today, however, demonstrating status has taken a new form. Henderson calls it "Luxury Beliefs." Luxury beliefs, he says, "are ideas and opinions that confer status on the upper class while often inflicting costs on the lower classes."

The article notes that the biggest proponents of defunding the police are not the middle and lower classes, but rather the elites who can afford their own private security and who live in gated communities.

In Pennsylvania, if you have a rust spot hole in the body of your car that is bigger than a quarter, you can't pass the mandatory state car inspection. Elites drive new cars every year, so the rule never hurts members of their class. What it does, however, is keep cars more expensive, not necessarily safer. That small hole is not going to kill or maim anyone. It limits the quantity of used cars available, thereby driving prices up.

The notion of Status Symbolism brought to mind a really insightful book by Janet O. Hagberg titled Real Power. Hagberg's experience as a consultant to numerous Fortune 500 companies in the 1980s gave her an insider's perspective on the nature of power within organizations. Her book details the six stages of personal power.

Hagberg details the characteristics of each stage, identifying what holds people back in that stage, and the ways to move forward out of that trap. Here are the stages she outlines.

Stage One: Powerlessness

Stage Two: Power by Association

Stage Three: Power by Symbols

Stage Four: Power by Reflection

Stage Five: Power by Purpose

Stage Six: Power by Gestalt

The reason this came to mind is because of what she said in the third chapter about symbols of power. 

Essentially most people who rise above the sense of personal powerlessness do so by associations or symbols. Unions, caucuses, church groups, VFW--there are manifold ways in which people feel more powerful by associating with a bigger group or team. 

Others gain a sense of power by means of symbols of success such as driving the right cars, living in the right neighborhood, capturing the corner office. In Hagberg's view these levels are traps that hold us back from attaining real power. Stages two and three derive their power from others rather than from within.

So returning to the original story, according to Rob Henderson Luxury Beliefs Are Status Symbols. To me, this is probably the most striking statement from the article: "Luxury beliefs are ideas and opinions that confer status on the upper class while inflicting costs on the lower classes." It's an interesting concept, and you can read the article by clicking on the bold, light blue text above.

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There was another story that came to mind when I thought of what was called "the leisure class" a hundred years ago. During World War One, one of the reasons so many young soldiers--men and boys--were slaughtered at the Somme and elsewhere in the early part of war is that nearly all but one of the British generals were from the leisure class. They had no clue what war was. They were generals in name, but preferred fox hunting and drinking fine wine or whatever diversion du jour occupied their attention. These generals were to be implicitly obeyed even as they ordered their troops to run headlong into German machine gun fire. 

Read: The British Generals at the Dawn of World War One

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Meantime life goes on.  

Real Power

Yesterday I wrote about how when God in the beginning created the heavens and the earth, he displayed two qualities that are unique to man: creativity and freedom. Later in the day I began thinking about another facet of this act of creation that is not spelled out but clearly present. I refer here to God's power. The mighty God who conceived and spoke into existence a universe.

It is important to understand power, though I hardly have time to write anything comprehensive here. Many people associate power with bullying and intimidation. Yes, this is a form of power, but not the highest form of power.

A number of years ago John Prin, a writer friend of mine, recommended an insightful analysis of power called Real Power by Janet Hagberg. The book outlines the six stages of personal power within organizations and is one I'd highly recommend to anyone seeking a greater self-understanding and how to move beyond powerlessness or the lower levels of influence.

According to Hagberg, the lowest level of power is powerlessness. The next level is power by association. The third stage is power by symbols. Stage four is power by reflection. Stage five is power by purpose. And the highest level of power of influence is the saint who remains powerfully influential long after leaving the systems or structures of power. People like Mother Teresa, Saint Francis of Assisi, etc.

I like thinking in terms of influence. This is a little different from the idea of creation or the power demonstrated by God in creation, but not entirely. Are we making an impact with our lives, our activities? Are we making a difference? How can we make a difference that counts for something? What is the meaning of our lives?

Many people see "power" as destructive, or with its destructive face affixed. Power is demonstrated by one's ability to manipulate, intimidate, crush and destroy. Is this real power? Maybe it is a form of power, but a distorted form for sure. For a true portrait of how power is most perfectly and vividly expressed, check out the message by Pastor Brad Shannon on January 6 called Our Self Giving Servant Father. It turns our usual understandings about power on their heads. This is indeed Real Power.

RECOMMENDED LINKS
Be sure to check out Janet Hagberg's Real Power at Amazon.com
Visit the website of my friend, the late author and speaker John Prin.