'Dilbert' Creator Scott Adams Needed Help

Sometimes we need assistance to save ourselves from ourselves

Scott Adams, the creator of the comic strip “Dilbert,” got lost in some crazy psychological dysfunction and worse, decided to publicly express his opinions on video about his recommendations that white people disassociate from Black human beings.

In addition, he also communicated that Black Americans are a “hate group.” Because they are, he concluded, white people should “get the hell away” from them.

Adams, as reckless people often do, didn’t conduct forward-thinking or intelligent, skilled, protective risk management before flying by the seat of his pants with mean-spirited and shockingly offensive, damaging communication and behavior.

What’s that old phrase? “Boom goes the dynamite.”

As expected, the figurative hammer of social backlash came down promptly and hard on his career and financial happiness. Adams’ decision-making and communication cost him dearly, as he immediately forfeited valued, important business relationships, opportunities and income.

I smell something burning. Do you? Adams peace and business.

"Most of my income will be gone by next week," Adams told people on a live-stream video. "My reputation for the rest of my life is destroyed. You can't come back from this, am I right? There's no way you can come back from this."

John Passantino and Oliver Darcy teamed up to write about the story at CNN.

“Andrews McMeel Universal, the company that syndicates “Dilbert,” said it is cutting ties with the comic strip’s creator, Scott Adams, after his racist remarks about Black Americans led hundreds of newspapers across the country to drop the satirical cartoon.”

Not only did Adams lose the relationships that allowed for his strip to have media homes and money, “The publisher of a forthcoming book from Adams also said Monday that it would no longer move forward with publishing the title.

“The Penguin Random House imprint, Portfolio, said it won’t publish Adams’ upcoming book, “Reframe Your Brain.” The book was set to release in September,” Passantino and Darcy reported.

Stop for a moment. Did you notice the title of the book? Are you seeing what I’m seeing? Maybe that title could have been a mantra and guidance for Adams before his reckless thinking, poor impulse control and foot-in-mouth public communication that led to the surprisingly foolish self-inflicted wounding that may have fatally wounded the public-and-commercial appeal of his future creative works.

Or if not fatal, then certainly damaging to the point where his social and marketable status will unlikely ever be the same, unless he is willing to do the types of painful emotional work and conflict repairs most people go to great lengths to avoid.

Adams is not quite dead in the water, so to speak, but his reputation is in the Intensive Care Unit (ICU). The question for him becomes, “what now?”

If Adams had run his communications intentions by someone before expressing his social conclusions and advice into the world for public consumption, he could have spared others of his egregious beliefs, wild communication and surreal recommendations and spared his business partners and himself traumatic injuries.

“Boom goes the dynamite.”

Michael Toebe is the specialist at Reputation Quality, assisting people further build reputation as an asset and responsibly, ethically protecting, restoring or reconstructing its well-being.