Ni Ren | Don’t call others “leader” at every turn

Now, there’s a strange phenomenon: regardless of whether there’s a hierarchical relationship, many people now like to address each other as “leader.”

In groups like some neighborhood offices, many residents call the staff “leader.” If this isn’t strange enough, some people even call the managers of community properties “leader.”

In some commercial matters, as long as they need something from the other party, many people are also accustomed to calling them “leader.”

Behind these strange things, there is a habit of “as long as I need something from you, I have to call you leader.”

In fact? Those community street or grassroots agency staff in WeChat groups, they serve the public. Calling them leaders is not only unnecessary, but also contrary to their actual position.

Clearly serving the public good, after being called this way, they seem to have become “managers.” The person being called is probably embarrassed, doesn’t the person calling them feel ridiculous?

In commercial affairs, calling others leaders at every turn is even more unnecessary. Sometimes, although you seem to need something from someone in some matters, needing something and “calling leader” are still two different things. Others won’t be more polite to you just because you call them leader; sometimes, it even damages the commercial contract, causing others to prefer to make things difficult for you.

Grassroots staff are the same. They also feel that they are ordinary civil servants. When all the people in the WeChat group call them leaders in unison, it is inevitable that arrogance and a feeling of “I’m in charge of you” will easily breed over time.

Just like in groups like the Industry and Commerce Bureau and the Food and Drug Administration, they are just releasing some information and providing services to merchants, but the merchants always call out “Leader, received” in unison, as if there is a hierarchical relationship.

This is a phenomenon of “externalization of the system’s atmosphere.” Many people are not within the system, but they like to speak in the tone and attitude of the system. Without a hierarchical relationship, they automatically bring in a hierarchical relationship; even if they are not inferior, they take the initiative to be inferior.

Many bad habits are gradually brought about in this way.

It’s normal to ask for help from others. As long as you go out to handle affairs, it’s either you asking for help, or others asking for help. But “asking for help” is a perfectly normal thing; it’s just that sometimes, being in a certain position, you happen to need this person to accept and approve something.

Even in business, there’s you asking me, and me asking you. Originally, it was an equal status. Maybe today you have advantageous resources, so I ask you; tomorrow you need me, so you have to ask me.

In most cases, as long as things are normal, they can be done, and you don’t need to call out that “leader.”

Calling it too much, for too long, sometimes even backfires. Others may feel that you are an easy target and want to take advantage of you.

Those who don’t want or dare to accept gifts may hint that you should give them gifts at this time.

Those who didn’t want to make things difficult for you may just want to make things difficult for you, to show the “leader’s” authority.

The atmosphere of the whole society always changes little by little, drop by drop. Calling “comrade” is a trend, calling “sir” is a trend, and calling “leader” is even more of a trend.

If most people start to get used to calling people leaders for no reason, and bowing and scraping to everyone, a society that originally had no distinction of status, and was originally progressing towards gradually equal consciousness, will also be forcibly blocked, or even regressed.

So, it’s better to call out “leader” less often, so as not to make yourself easier to be bullied, and at the same time spoil others and ruin the atmosphere.

As an ordinary citizen, no one is your leader.