In any competition, players are always in it to win the ultimate prize, be it as a team or individually. But what happens when people in the workplace resort to unfair practices to get ahead at their colleagues’ expense? Read on to see some depictions of unhealthy competition from the Netflix show “Squid Game.”
Photo credit: Netflix
You have probably heard of the hit Netflix show "Squid Game" on your social media pages by now. And if you haven't watched it by now, you must have really strong willpower that doesn’t give in to peer pressure. Personally, I watched it because I was tired of seeing Squid Game memes and references all over my timeline that I couldn't understand. Plus, the FOMO was just too much for me to bear. So last Saturday, I dived into what Netflix CEO Ted Sarandos described as one of the biggest series on their platform yet.
The show’s plot revolves around hundreds of debt-ridden Korean citizens who are persuaded to engage in several children's games with an ultimate grand cash prize of almost 40 million USD. The catch? Lose a game, and you die. The plot is a literal play on the phrase, "get rich or die trying." The show explores various themes such as debt, today's capitalistic society, discrimination, and class inequality. However, the one that stood out to me most is modern "hustle culture" and how it can breed unhealthy competition, which I find also applies to the workplace.
Hustle culture revolves around the notion that we are expected to spend most of our time working to achieve success. Those who refuse to comply will be seen as lazy and replaced immediately by someone willing to do what you cannot. Hustle culture then generates unhealthy competition among employees, just as the 456 contestants in the show were turned against each other in the game. The thriller basically tells us that only the most desperate, lucky, or clever individuals survive and that no one is ever really safe. And while this may apply in specific competitions, the rules are different for the workplace.
There is nothing wrong with healthy competition in the workplace if it aims to achieve a shared goal, such as increased customer satisfaction or higher revenues. Constructive competitiveness can even boost team spirit and enhance creativity when teams aim to win together. A productive, competitive environment also promotes personal growth without negatively impacting the team's output. However, competition can turn toxic and unhealthy when team members are pitted against each other and focus on winning for themselves at the expense of everyone else. Here are some common causes for toxic competition that I spotted on Squid Game, which can also apply to the workplace.
Egos can get in the way of shared goals
On the show, we meet Jang Deok-su (Player 101), a psychopath gangster who believes he is superior to the other players and constantly bullies them to gain an edge in the competition. Similarly, egotistical workers might also take up superiority over their colleagues, making them refuse to work with people they see as less capable. They do not embrace teamwork, which can be detrimental to any project. Such workers tend to focus on seeming clever or the best, which can deflect the team's goals. When workers lose sight of the main shared goal for success and focus more on individual output, it can affect the company. Teamwork is about promoting collective improvement, supporting and encouraging new ideas, and building each other up. Aim for your entire team to excel instead of rivaling your coworkers.
Withholding information from the team
Another character on the show who garnered a lot of hate from audiences was Cho Sang-woo (Player 218), an intelligent businessman who withholds information from his teammates when it benefits him. Without giving too much away, he quickly figures out one of the games after overhearing a clue from one of the other players and keeps it from his teammates, even though it could contribute to their shared success. Following the same train of thought, toxic competitiveness aims to prevent rivals' success by sabotaging them. People might start withholding helpful information from their colleagues, maybe to keep others from doing better than them, to appear more intelligent, or out of selfishness. Sabotaging others from achieving their maximum potential will eventually slow down the rest of the team. Sharing information benefits the whole team long-term, and everyone ends up reaping the rewards.
Unhealthy alliances
We are all for building smart alliances and strong teamwork to boost output; however, not all partnerships are positive. For example, cliques are considered harmful alliances because, in their nature, they are made to be inaccessible. We see an excellent example of such in the show when gangster Jang Deok-su (Player 101) forms a clique with other players who share the same literal cut-throat mentality as he does. The players in this unholy alliance go to extreme lengths to harm the other players to win the game. Sometimes you will find departments or people working on group projects viewing the work environment from an "us versus them" perspective. Again, this can lead to teams or departments not helping other groups, which does not contribute to the shared success of the company.
So how can we learn to play nice in the workplace?
By encouraging and initiating teamwork between your colleagues, be it through team-building activities, you can improve the culture of working collectively. The aim should be to encourage everyone to work towards collective success and celebrate wins as a team. We can promote healthy competition in the workplace by asking the following questions:
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What can we improve on as a team?
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How can we work together to achieve our team's shared goals?
These questions encourage people to think like a group and work together toward shared achievements. Encourage each of your colleagues to measure your team's success as a whole.
You can also foster a healthy competitive spirit by celebrating your colleagues' achievements and taking it as an inspiration to improve your strategies. A positive mindset always benefits any team and sharing in others' success promotes a winning culture. When it comes to failures, accept your losses gracefully, learn from them, and take or give constructive criticism on doing better next time.
Lastly, as much as teamwork is essential for shared success, don't forget to focus on your personal growth. Instead of mirroring others to get the same result (e.g., the honeycomb toffee challenge in Squid Game), set your own goals and work towards them in a way that works for you. Learn from others without trying to become them. Know when to offer and ask for support externally and within your team. You can still help each other with KPIs and tasks while still maintaining a healthy competitive spirit.
