Workplace Thinking / 职场思维
Author: Dexin Kong
ORCID: https://orcid.org/0009-0008-3831-5725
Structured and refined with assistance from ChatGPT
AI Automatic Translation (Unreviewed)
Event
Around 2010, though the exact year is hard to remember now, “career success studies” suddenly became extremely popular for a period of time.
At the time, a certain “workplace expert” once shared a viewpoint that spread widely in professional circles:
If you wanted to climb the corporate ladder quickly, you had to develop “workplace thinking.”
What was “workplace thinking”?
Put simply: do not wait passively for assignments. Learn to take the initiative.
“Any work that can make it into a PowerPoint presentation should be actively claimed, led from the front, taken seriously, and done loudly.”
As for the rest of the work, avoid it if possible, push it away if possible, and above all, do not waste your own time and energy on it.
For a while, this viewpoint was treated almost like an unwritten secret within many workplaces, quietly shared only within certain small circles.
Around 2017, the term “White Rabbit” suddenly became popular again.
It seemed that the entire industry had started discussing the dangers of “White Rabbits.”
As a result, identifying “White Rabbits” and eliminating “White Rabbits” gradually became an unquestionable consensus inside many companies.
Later, another piece of workplace slang quietly circulated in the industry:
“If you don’t want to become a ‘White Rabbit,’ you should spend more time thinking about one question: can you help prove that your boss is right?”
By around 2024, yet another phrase had started spreading across the industry:
“Layoffs hit the company’s main artery.”
Something about all of this just feels slightly off.
Note:
This project is an ongoing independent research effort developed in spare time.
Some concepts and terminology may continue evolving over time.
The English version may contain translation inaccuracies or semantic deviations.
The Chinese version remains the primary reference.