I’m sure what I’m about to describe happens in almost every profession; in fact, it’s inherent to our obsession with climbing the productive ladder, sometimes without considering the method used to achieve this. The tendency to self-justify our progress, while also nullifying that of other competitors, dates back a long time, perhaps from childhood.

I understand that in an imperfect world, achieving the reputation necessary to fit into that niche made just for us could be justified by any means if the results of our work demonstrated it.

But it often happens that this is not the case.

Liberal professions based on qualifications apply a fairly effective natural filter. No one becomes a lawyer, doctor, or architect overnight, attending three short courses and cajoling four unsuspecting decision-makers with a pitch as brilliant as it is false.

But in other professions, social position, spurious verbosity, or even attire often seem to matter more than genuine knowledge, leadership, or problem-solving skills.

In this competition of ethereal merits, we often find, sometimes unintentionally, people whom we don’t hesitate to call geeks, simply because they understand the profession as a vocation. In a way, they feel chosen because they understand the work, are committed to it, and constantly contribute valid solutions.

Geeks are very annoying to those who invite themselves to promotion, especially when they receive the scent of a good salary and higher social standing.

Just as the child who owned the ball used his ownership to choose or discard players for his soccer game, self-proclaimed certified professionals take refuge in courses, customized rules, evaluations by other charlatans, and the like. Anything goes to distance themselves from the geeks because, aside from their vast amount of knowledge and vocation, what else could they possibly contribute?

It’s no wonder we’re moving toward an increasingly dark reality, permanently rooted in change, where rights are redefined as privileges, and where corporate productivity takes a backseat to excellence, with no one able to explain the meaning of such a concept in fewer than 20 words.

Professionals who hate geeks are a cancer. They are behind the closure of companies that were once leading, the abandonment of customers, unjustified price increases, terrible customer service, product devaluation, and the dizzying decline in profits for companies that are still capable of understanding that the human value of vocation is above houses of cards and fake hair growth products.

Still today, the geeks are losing the battle, but a new paradigm called Artificial Intelligence has arrived that, like chemotherapy, will bring down the fakers, exposing their mediocrity.

It’s up to us as a society to be able to identify the geeks and place them in the positions they should always have occupied.