How Many Hats do You Wear?

First it was separating and recycling paper at my desk. Soon to follow was the announcement of cutbacks in the frequency of trash pick-up. Then, there was the inevitable request to sort my trash, and deliver it to a central trash location. These are all things I am willing to do out of my core values and concern for the environment. However, I can’t shake the feeling that by persuading me to do these tasks, there may just be more requests to come. So, what’s next? Will it soon be my turn in the rotation to deliver the entire fourth floor’s trash to the parking lot?

I could add a multitude of job titles to my resume as a result of management’s effective use of commitment-consistency theory. This theory suggests that “persuading people to comply with a small and seemingly harmless request greatly increases their likelihood of complying with a subsequent, larger request” (Vaidyanathan and Aggarwal, 2005, p. 2). As of now, I should be on the payroll as an expeditor, postman, photo-copier repairman, and my newest role, waste disposal management. These jobs are all in addition to my official given title of Financial Services Representative. They are also a direct result of being persuaded to carry out a seemingly small, no-strings-attached task.

Nevertheless, these adopted roles have helped to create a positive brand for myself which probably plays a part as to why I allow myself to be persuaded. Thanks to Vaidyanathan and Aggarwal’s article, I now have a name and theory to apply to the tasks I am frequently motivated and often suckered in to doing.

Vaidyanathan, R., & Aggarwal, P. (2005, December). Using commitments to drive consistency: enhancing the effectiveness of cause‐related marketing communications. Journal of Marketing Communications, 11(4), 231-246. Retrieved October 19, 2008.