Last week, we talked about how Laala Companies, Startups, and Government Offices thrive on suffering—how misery is turned into a management strategy, a work ethic, even a virtue. But there’s one more category that deserves attention.
The Indian corporate world.
It’s the place where suffering is polished, packaged, and made to look like career growth. Here, work isn’t about getting things done. It’s about navigating a minefield of office politics, unnecessary hierarchy, and power games.
The Corporate Masochism Manual
In corporates, work is secondary. Survival is primary. The game isn’t about skill, intelligence, or hard work—it’s about playing the politics right.
First rule? Kiss up, kick down. Your relationship with your manager matters far more than your actual performance. Promotions don’t go to the most competent people; they go to the ones who master the art of looking busy while ensuring their boss feels important. Meanwhile, the ones below you? They exist to be blamed when things go wrong. That’s the natural order of things.
Second rule? More managers, fewer doers. Corporates love hierarchy. Layers upon layers of managers, each more disconnected from reality than the one below. Need a decision? It will be discussed, re-discussed, then sent up the chain, only to be sent back down. By the time anything is approved, it’s either outdated or irrelevant. The people who actually do the work are buried under processes created by people who don’t.
Final rule? Too much politics, too little professionalism. Decisions aren’t made on merit. They’re made based on alliances, hidden agendas, and backroom deals. Workplaces become battlefields where people aren’t trying to build something great—they’re just trying to avoid becoming collateral damage.
If you’re not careful, you spend years in the system, learning nothing except how to navigate egos, write long emails that say nothing, and sit through meetings that could have been an email.
Choosing a Different Path: Work Without Suffering
Not every workplace runs on suffering. Some organizations actually reward skill, value employees, and believe that work should be meaningful, not just painful. These companies do a few things differently.
First, they trust their employees. No constant surveillance, no micromanagement—just clear expectations and the freedom to get the job done. They don’t believe productivity comes from fear; it comes from autonomy.
Second, they understand that work ≠ pain. Just because something is hard doesn’t mean it’s valuable. Some of the best innovations in the world happened because someone figured out an easier way to do things. Smart work beats hard work, every time.
Third, they focus on real growth, not guilt. Growth isn’t about taking on more responsibilities for the same pay or sacrificing weekends to “prove” commitment. It’s about upskilling, better pay, career progression—things that actually benefit the employee, not just the company.
The culture of misery isn’t necessary. It’s just a bad habit. One that too many companies refuse to break.
The best workplaces have already moved past it. It’s time more followed.