Month: December 2021 | the Wakefield Doctrine

Six Sentence Story -the Wakefield Doctrine-

December 9, 2021 By clarkscottroger

Welcome to the Wakefield Doctrine (the theory of clarks, scotts and rogers)

Hosted by Denise.

Governed by the Rule of Six.

This week’s prompt word:

GUIDE

“Say what, now?”

“You will need everyone of the four people I put on the plane with you,” the volume of Anya Claireaux’s voice spiked to a value such that she might as well been standing in the aisle of the G750 as we taxi’d up to the terminal in Frankfort; for God knows what reason, I did a half-wave and a quarter-smile as four heads rotated towards me like an anime remake of the Exorcist.

“For what I’m paying you, I must say I’m beginning to feel a bit underwhelmed,” the ghost of a smile on the woman from Chicago’s face, beaming up from my phone, was the only vote in my head against throwing the phone down and walking off the plane.

“But, you’re not paying me, my client Leanne is,” for some reason, I put my hand over the phone as I walked past the pilot standing at the door; his expression was the institutional sympathy encountered when the door to the dentist’s office we’re entering is held open by someone leaving; I ignored him and stepped off the private jet into the gangway, the sound of countless travelers at the far end growing like a river rushing past a cave.

“Ian, Ian, Ian what could possibly make you so ungrateful,” Anya’s voice resonated with echoes from the Early Flirtatious Period from every boy’s life, when what we believed about the suddenly-fascinating girl was chiseled in adolescent granite; crossing the cavern of the main terminal, the two Interpol agents and Lacy Whitelaw and friend following me like year-old pilot fish.

“Ach du lieber! Ian, mein freund, it is good that you return,” Detective Captain Anton Rilke, every bit an understudy for John Banner on the set of the old TV show, Hogan’s Hero’s, held his arms out, threatening a hug; my phone, now an inert rectangle of LCDs and plastic; clearly I’d been successfully guided to where everyone wanted me.

Filed Under: Featured, Psychology, the Wakefield Doctrine Tagged With: Six Sentence Story, the Wakefield Doctrine

Teusday -the Wakefield Doctrine- “ok, we get it’s all about reprints…but spelling optional?!”

December 7, 2021 By clarkscottroger

Welcome to the Wakefield Doctrine (the theory of clarks, scotts and rogers)

Hey, before we get to the reprint. (Which we’re looking forward to, as it has a lesser-seen movie illustration of the personality types of the Wakefield Doctrine. Specifically, a roger and a scott. Forgot how cool this one was. Now… where the hell is the door outa this parenthesisisis?!)

Before we do that…

whew!

Advanced students, (and ambitiously-confident New Readers*), here’s an interesting thing: the misspelled title? It’s because we turned off the spellchek**. We turned off the spellchuck*** because it was autocorrecting improperly. I thought about digging into the WP dashboard and fixing it but, it was easier to turn it off.

…and endure the consequences. (Don’t even ask us about childhood experiences with dentists. It’s exactly like this instance. Except instead of the intimidation of messing with the inner workings of the blog, there were giant needles. And, instead of constant re-typing of common words, there were six-year-old dental nerve endings.)

Where were we?

oh, yeah! Reprint!

Excellent one this Tuesday. Classic scott in Jack and James Spader? Nothing less than poster boy of the Herd it’s ownself.

Welcome to the Wakefield Doctrine (the theory of clarks, scotts and rogers)

Alert Reader Denise writes:

“…Doctrine! It has provided me with much insight into rogers. In a nutshell: they will always be the ones to say no. They will do nothing to disturb the boundaries, the lines that frame their world. clarks need to take notice of this. The sooner the better. I leave it in your hands, Clark, to explain to new readership the why. Maybe you need to write the answer in the form of a post.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

And since we are talking about rogers**

Our Friend Zoe says to us in a Comment, she says:

“… my new roger is settling in to his new environment a bit too well… coveting my office…I loan my office out readily without reservation, but he made it very clear by saying ” I want that office… when are you leaving?” and has left telltale signs of his usage… I may have a rogerian twist and be a clark at heart… but never piss off my scott.”

Sorry. The ‘damage’ is done.

Not to ‘baby-coat’¹ our assessment, but you are witnessing a roger challenging your membership in the herd. How is that possible, you ask? The frickin guy got there 20 minutes ago and he thinks that he can include himself in the group? ( you say with not a little emotion). What gives him the right to try that? If you are in possession of any of these thoughts, I hate to tell ya, but you have just painted yourself a lovely shade of blue². It is totally ‘too late’.

Not ‘too late’ to make things right, restore the proper balance, achieve an understanding among the players in this little drama…. just ‘too late’ to avoid a ‘conflict’ with the roger in your environment.

If he had perceived you as another roger or a scott he would have:

presented his credentials, not to meet your approval but to allow him to ‘tune himself to the herd’ (you know how the sound of cattle and herds of cows are often presented as a single ‘MOO’ ? well, I think our Progenitor roger will attest to the fact that what is heard as a single MOO is, in fact, comprised as a harmony among the members… your roger probably started with presenting some of his history to everyone he came into contact with…to hear the pitch of his new herd)

presented his ‘soft-underbelly’ if he thought you were a scott (at least, a predominant scottian female)… but this observation is moot, because in that particular tango, the woman leads… (at least initially and to the extent that the average person is able to see

So… now you have yourself a roger feeling like he can enhance his standing in the herd by making you appear more and more the Outsider. Remember, a dominance move by a roger, in contrast to that of a scott is never made ‘alone’. While he may appear to be addressing the matter of use of the office space to you directly, most of his efforts are actually directed to the others in your environment. rogers always work in the context of the group, the herd. It is this ‘contexting’ that rogers will base their strategy on, that and, be on the lookout for (him) invoking referential authority. ( Hey, I know you love your space..I respect that, but we were talking about how, with the practice growing we all need to work together more…”)

All kidding aside. you now have a problem that, interestingly enough, can be seen as a manifestation of the trap that would appear to an inherent aspect of the desire for self-improving oneself. You rightly know that you can ‘over-come’ this person’s attempt to reduce the quality of your personal work environment. But at what price? The Doctrine states that we all retain access to those two worldviews that are not our predominant worldview. In your case, (we hear you say), ‘ a clark with secondary rogerian and tertiary scottian aspects’. but…. but! here is where the conflict begins to manifest. (If) you are a clark, then your personal reality is that of the Outsider…which makes perfect sense given your situation. You can access your scottian aspect and inter-act with this roger as would a scott, and as we have already said, if this were a scott-on-roger thing, none of the the above would be happening. So, you can dominate the roger rather decidedly. But then what? Will you trade your predominant (clarklike) worldview for a victory in a single circumstance? Or… is there a way to reach an understanding with this person? unfortunately, the Wakefield Doctrine says ‘no’.

Well, sorta. We’re playing with the words now. clarks think, scotts act and rogers feel. So, if you want to reach an understanding, you are out of luck. That is not to say that there is nothing you can do, but it should not be thought of as an understanding.

Lets return to a strategy we have previously offered: ‘love your roger‘ This is still the preferred strategy, but it will require a bit more….finessing. Yes, you should ‘love your roger‘, but that does not mean (as is all too often the case with clarks), you must allow him to do as he wishes. But, to love your roger requires that you relate to him on an emotional basis… more than that! you must regard him on an emotional basis. We’re using italics here to convey the idea that, if you are able to know him completely on an emotional basis you will be relating to him as a member of the herd. That’s right! trade that lovely azure coat for a comforting wrap of brown and white spots!

(will continue later today…. )

Wait a minute!! If you haven’t seen it yet, watch the scott and roger…. everything is right there. (the roger looking to left and right for the herd that is his context, his invoking referential authority, his offering of emotional currency…his love).

1) a rogerian expression of sorts… a fascinating characteristic use of language found only in rogers…here, go to the page on rogers down towards the bottom

2) a reference to the description of a clark in the context of a group, or perhaps it would be more realistic to say, ‘a clark in contrast to a group’. In any event, the term ‘blue monkey’ is a remnant of grad school days when we learned of, (or came to believe that we learned of), an experiment in which one young monkey was painted, (more likely dyed), blue and returned to his troop. You can imagine the result. In the Wakefield Doctrine we use the blue monkey image several ways, as a symbol of the innate outsider-ness that clarks exhibit when in a social setting, and it is also used to refer to (a) clarks self-sabotaging by make an extra effort to ‘contrast their differences’.

* which, finally, here in the world of the Wakefield Doctrine, clarks step up into a leadership role… we’ll until, that is, the Herd begins to re-orientate itself, an amoeba with a million faces, propelled by the inexorable power of curling lips, on a body and then, well, lets hope the clark in question has a sufficiently significant secondary scottian aspect

** take that! you supercilious (don’t think about the root of that word…ewww) nanny sub-routine

*** hah!

Filed Under: Featured, Psychology, the Wakefield Doctrine, Uncategorized Tagged With: personality types, self-development, the Wakefield Doctrine, three personality types, Understanding Human Behavior

Reprint Monday -the Wakefield Doctrine-

December 6, 2021 By clarkscottroger

Welcome to the Wakefield Doctrine (the theory of clarks, scotts and rogers)

Here’s a thought. How many of us will read below the ‘Reprint’ post, if we say, “And a quick recap of this weekend’s Saturday Night Drive, at the bottom of today’s Reprint?”

Only one sure way to find out.

From 2016

Welcome to the Wakefield Doctrine (the theory of clarks, scotts and rogers)

(why, yes! you do see a clark and a scott and a roger)

As promised. a Doctrine post that does not consist of six (and only six) sentences and is not particularly gratified.

Quick Pop Quiz (‘Who Said It’ Category):

“I really get tired of listening to that guy talk about himself. He’s so self-absorbent”

clark or scott or roger?

So what does this have to do with self-improvement?

Hey! Chapter 23 of ‘Almira‘ is on the streets! Smart money says this story is gonna go extra innings. (Everything I read about getting a book published is all, “maximum 90k words unless you spell your name with a ROWLING or a KING in it.) Thing of it is, I’m liking the characters and the story they’re telling. What am I supposed to say, ‘Hey! hurry the hell up! Tell us how this all comes out!…. well, no, not you Eliza… everyone enjoys your scenes… shit, don’t let Almira hear you, she mess you up!’

So I will continue as I have, writing one chapter each and every week until the story of Almira is told. There are worse ways to spend one’s non-working hours. And, of course, I get to be the first to learn things about our friends, for instance: You all knew that Almira and Sterling just happened to pass through Eminence, Missouri on a fateful day in March, 1925, right? (When I say ‘passed through’ I mean, ‘chased out of town by angry pentecostalists, right into the path of the deadliest tornado in history’) and, you ….

Wait! I’m supposed to be writing about the Wakefield Doctrine and how it can be of benefit to you in the course of your day today! Sorry. This is, in fact, the reason for my resolution to write more frequently here, take a breather from the world of 1912 and 1939.

So, here’s some very practical advice: if your boss is a roger, never ask him/her a question in public* that the answer is anything other than proof that he/she is the best of all managers. If you want or need something for real, ask in private. And when you’re doing that, don’t ask the question straight out of the box, always preface it with a, ‘Excuse me/hey, have you got a minute for a quick question?’

Where are my damn manners?!?! Here I am starting out the week with a Doctrine post without a simple statement of the theory of clarks, scotts and rogers! Pardon me, New Readers. I beg your forgiveness, I’ve been off the regular Doctrine Lecture circuit far, far too long.

The Wakefield Doctrine is a perspective on the world and how we relate ourselves to it. The Doctrine maintains that we, all of us, have the potential to live in one of three characteristic (personal) realities and, at an early age we settle into one (while retaining the potential of ‘the other two’) and grow up and develop and live. The personality types of the Doctrine reflect the strategies and coping mechanisms we develop to deal with the nature of the world that we grow up in. In other words, the behavior and characteristic views on life that identify me as a clark are, collectively, my best effort to live in the world as I found it when I was but a child.

The three worldviews:

clarks (the Outsiders) they are odd but kind, fearful and courageous, giving and needy. clarks try to hide but hate to be ignored, you have at least one as a friend (unless you’re a clark yourself, in which case, you know several, but never hang out just with them)

scotts (the Predators) holy smokes! you totally have a scottian friend (unless you are one, in which case, you have several, but, for the most part, they’re like the ensigns-without-a-name who are included in the away team in the beginning of the last Star Trek episode you saw (they ain’t beaming back up)…. scotts are the life of the party and cause you to say on more than one occasion, ‘…but, she’s/he’s my friend since I can remember! Sure he/she goes a little overboard at times, but, look! we got through it without the (police, ambulance, parish priest, CPR, grace-of-god)!!’ scotts are generous to a fault, brave without sense and do they ever look great in heels

rogers (the Herd Members) the majority of the population, they are the reasons that the planes don’t fall from the sky, (as opposed to being flown into things or never leaving the runway). rogers are creative in the sense of clever use (and) re-assembly of components, wicked good musicians and are the sole reason that we’re not all still living on the savannah hunting in small packs and/or hiding in the underbrush. rogers are kind but at a price, bold (in a group) and the glue of social continuity (a quality at first so prosaic as to be disregarded, until you’re at a high school party at someone whose parents are away for the weekend and the liquor cabinet is discovered un-locked.)

Ok, that should get you started.

Questions?

* ‘public’ being defined as anyplace that there’s more than two people, or in a location one might imagine that you’re being overheard or, hell, overseen (as in standing outside in a courtyard where no one could possibly hear you, but can see the two of you talking…. that’s being in public to a roger

Hey! Glad you could make it…clarks and scotts-with-significant secondary clarklike aspects (don’t worry, we won’t tell anyone!)

In any event, good call-in this weekend. Talked about… the Wakefield Doctrine!! lol Always fun.

Filed Under: Featured, Psychology, the Wakefield Doctrine Tagged With: self-development, self-improvement, the Wakefield Doctrine

TToT -the Wakefield Doctrine-

December 4, 2021 By clarkscottroger

Welcome to the Wakefield Doctrine (the theory of clarks, scotts and rogers)

This is the Ten Things of Thankful bloghop. Welcome to all. (Pro Tip: see what we did there? You’re welcome. You never know, when you’re writing a TToT and someone shouts, “More cowbell!” You’re all set.)

This week the Wakefield Doctrine submits the following list of people, places and things that have elicited the emotional response of gratitude.

1) Una

2) Phyllis (working from her outdoor-Outdoor office.)

3) the Wakefield Doctrine (’cause, qua non, ya know? sine qua non)

4) serial stories to write, read and enjoy ‘the Whitechapel Interlude’ and ‘the Case of the Missing Fig Leaf’ (an Ian Devereaux mystery)

5) Six Sentence Story (bloghop where you can find the above serial story, new installment each week)

6) Hey! We know there lies in the hearts of you, the Average Reader, a burning curiosity about the inner workings of the High Council of the TToT Hostinae (Long May They Reign). Well, this week, they’ve posed a question regarding the upcoming holidays. A little piacere nostro!

“Both holidays in December fall on a Saturday!” Exalted Leader, Dyanne announced.

“Well, technically, one of them is not only not in December and, in fact, falls in an entirely New Year.” offered Pat, with a comforting smile, the better to soothe the emotional waves that her observation might incite.

“I would be happy to suggest that, perhaps, we might take, you know, the weekends off? Only if we all concur and perhaps...” Lisa brightened the atmosphere of the meeting room with her ameliorative suggestion.

“I distinctly recall saying in my email that we would decide this as a group! What good is it to have a monogram HCM of the TToT on our lingerie if we don’t do something!” Dyanne stood, the top of the high-back chair struck the floor before the legs ceased their sliding. “Mimi!! Where is Mimi!!”

The Hall (of the High Council) had the acoustic qualities of an Elizabethan opera hall, as a result it reached all parts of the massive stone structure; even the scullery maids stopped at the sound of the shorted interrogatives.

Without fanfare of prelude, the butler’s door swung wide, without apparent cause and there appeared a figure, casting a shadow without measure. Mimi smiled at all in attendance, before looking towards the end of the table. “Why, I would be only too happy to ask him to weigh in on the question,” slight applauding from the kitchen escaped on the final back-swinging of the door, brass hand plate glowing. “If I might suggest…”

The hall suddenly became as quiet, as she remembers a metaphor from her favorite serial story author, ‘…as quiet as a foreclosed church’. Turning, she stared up into the eyes of the Head of the Council with a determination that made argument as futile as getting an old blogger to stop writing and continued, “I’ll ask that he have his people do a Polling. They’re always up for group stuff.”

7) Poll

8) something, something

10) Secret Rule 1.3 (what kind of Secret Rule would this be, if we, like, just came out and printed it here?) ok, Hint: You’re all Typety McType-Type and the Grat Items are appearing on your monitor like… well, being Saturday, like bacon spatters on a black solid-surface stove top during a rushed breakfast prep. Damn! I miss those incredibly-painful-but-mercifully-brief sparks of pain when you turn the bacon with the heat too high. Those were the days. oh, yeah, hint. So you’re moving through the list and you crest over Grat Item Six. What do you see in the near distance? Yep! The finish line. Don’t that make you feel…

music

Filed Under: Featured, Psychology, the Wakefield Doctrine Tagged With: the Wakefield Doctrine

Six Sentence Story -the Wakefield Doctrine-

December 1, 2021 By clarkscottroger

Welcome to the Wakefield Doctrine (the theory of clarks, scotts and rogers)

This is the Six Sentence Story bloghop.

Hosted by Denise.

Governed by one rule: entries must tally six (and only six) sentences in length.

Prompt word:

RESERVE

The sun, like an inept burglar, crept up to the edge of the Carpathian mountain range to the east and hid; unable or unwilling to believe it could restrain its light in the name of surprise.

Sarah touched the edge of the china cup and raised an eyebrow; Cyrus St. Loreto tipped the silver spout, dark liquid charged the air with the aroma of a new day and, his eyes never leaving hers, said: “If you insist, ‘Once upon a time...'”

The young woman’s laughter was one of un-affected celebration as the Count finally capitulated to the entreaties, initiated with the first course of dinner, continuing beyond her travel companion’s repairing to his room, a casualty of travel fatigue; her enjoyment of victory was enhanced by the contrast to his inbred and cultured reserve reinforcing his natural formality, Cyrus St. Loreto offered the rarest of gifts, the natural humor found among friends and equals.

His brow relaxed, sealing the momentary link that bound more than their minds, “And here I thought I was entertaining a proper English girl bravely serving a mission on behalf of her Order; if the arrangement you have with your companion”, Cyrus paused both for emphasis and to savor the growing tension, “I am not referring to your well-intentioned friend Anselm, rather the spirit that runs through your eyes like an insolent girl locked in her room waving from the window, that I would petition an audience.”

Sarah smiled down into the ebony pool held lightly before her lips and with a self-assurance at odds with her youth and experience, “If your discretion is all it is reputed to be, I might be inclined to arrange an introduction.”

This time, it was the former ruler of a dark and ill-defined domain who cast his eyes down, as instinctual as it was an effective encouragement, the matching of the stalking predator to his prey’s pace; encouraging surrender in the guise of triumph.