The popular literature on careers advises individuals to take charge of their situations – to be active agents in shaping their work environments and career opportunities. We believe you will improve your effectiveness and your sense of yourself as a person 300% if you can learn to think (or if you already think) of yourself as an active agent helping to mould your own present environment and your own future, rather than a passive agent, waiting for your environment to mould you. (Bolles 1980:74) You have to take over the management of your own job-hunt or career-change, if it is to be successful. (Bolles 1988:43) You can create opportunity for the future by putting yourself in charge of your career. Your initial commitment is to take full control of your actions. (Greco 1975:19) In contrast, a major school of thought in the academic literature on careers, the socialization literature, views individuals as much more passive and malleable. Often, individuals are portrayed as if they join the organization practically as lumps of clay, ready to be shaped by all those around them, from co-worker to supervisor to mentor. As mainly receivers of influence, individuals attempt to “learn the ropes” in the organization, modeling not only their behaviors but also their attitudes on those who appear to be successful participants: Like a sculptor's mold, certain forms of socialization can produce remarkably similar outcomes no matter what individual ingredients are used to fill the mold. (Van Maanen and Schein 1979:231) To be fair, we recognize that the academic literature does not totally ignore the individual in its treatment of careers.
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