Gatekeepers

A higher up in PTA expressed her disapproval at my candor with the new principal. She pulled me aside and very brusquely said : You have to stop telling her [the principal] about all these things—because once she knows, she will be obligated to do something about it.

During the second heat wave this summer it became obvious to everyone in my household that the second zone air conditioning unit was failing to keep the upper floors cool. And when I called the repair company to report my dissatisfaction I was met with a woman who explained that during record heat, it was normal to experience fluctuations in temperature within the house-- and since the unit was checked the week before and found to be in working order there was nothing more that could be done about it.

 I reminded her that the point of central air conditioning was climate control, and if this was normal, then I needed a new normal. I thus requested to speak with the engineer.

And I read today that a man discovered a way to circumvent all the security controls on Facebook. The man then attempted to report his hacking ability to the underlings at the company so that the problem could be resolved. But the man was ignored. And so this hacker used his knowledge to illegally post about his newly acquired skill on Mark Zuckerburg’s personal Facebook page.

And I, completely understand the role of the gatekeeper. They are the person responsible for keeping the kingdom (as well as the King) running in a high performance mode. They sift through the debris to find that which is of value. They pan tirelessly with little reward.

 But it can make them a bit too heady. And as a result they make decisions not for them to decide.

They impede, rather than promote progress.

Because a gatekeepers job is to keep the gate—not rule the kingdom. They should be a conduit of information—not the editor. Principals, engineers and CEOs cannot fix that which they have no knowledge of being broken.  Which is why I ignored the PTA higher up, I enjoy a climate controlled second and third floor courtesy of the engineer, and the glitch in Facebook has been corrected.