Writer, Agilist, Elder Geek
So last we met I discussed originality being an illusion, but I feel I do need to cover something – the use of tropes, stereotypes, and “seen-it-all-before” elements in our worldbuilding. For the sake of not having to abuse a thesaurus, I’m just going to call these “Tropes.” Plus it’s shorter to type.
I’ve talked about tropes as something that can kill a world because they’re unreal – yet at times tropes aren’t a problem. Let’s explore.
Continuing my series on Stereotype-fu, let's take a look at another way to deal with stereotypes in the job and career.
I should note that I'm talking about the more innocent (or stupid) ones – not the nasty, negative stereotypes that we all know a bit to well – those that judge people by ethnicity, or gender, region of borth etc. Those are areas outside the scope of what I'm discussing.
So when you're afraid you're being affected by stereotypes in your workplace, on an interview, etc. another tool is a sense of humor.
Last column I discussed one way of dealing with stereotypes that come up in your career is to pick positive ones – and divert people stereotyping you to see you in a more positive light. You pick one ahead of time to divert people who are stereotyping you.
Another option, a tougher one, is to use Archetypes.