Michael Scott, the man with to first names that has captured America’s imagination for the past several years in the memorable mockumentary comedy show The Office is a character that the public all loves to hate. The man (or “the management”) is the one who’s always bringing us down, and in this case it seems to be done by an awkward, childish buffoon who somehow landed his role as the boss not through his keen business sense, but what appears to be sheer luck. And for some reason, America tunes in weekly to digest the next bout of his fumblings and bumblings around the office that in some cases end in sheer catastrophe, and in others end on a heartwarming note. Why is this? Well, it’s because we all kind of have a little bit of Michael Scott in all of us.Michael Scott is a character that embodies the awkwardness and inabilities that all of us fear that we have. Most people in social situations strive to maintain some sense of normalcy and project that so that those around them perceive this. Michael, as a character, breaks these natural human norms, and the writers have implemented features such as the complete lack of a filter and an almost child-like nature in his approval-seeking from his peers. When you break it down, it’s apparent that Michael Scott is actually a very simple man who wants three things; a partner in life, a comfortable job, and friends. With the prevalent absence of two of these things it actually becomes apparent that Michael is desperate to get these things in his life, and in recent episodes it has been revealed that he’s just wanted friends for a very long time (since childhood). All of the antics, all of the awkwardness can be attributed to this base nature.

I feel that this is a sense that is deeply ingrained in us as a society, where measures like popularity and success are typically the variables that assign “value” to you as a person. In this sense, everyone is a little bit like Michael Scott. At some point in time we have desperately craved approval, whether it be from our parents, our peers, or our coworkers — and in some cases we’ve gone out of our way to receive it. Others (like myself) have a constant thought process playing in the background of social situations, though not always vocalized per the methods of Michael Scott, the fear of being awkward or rejected is an ever-present idea. Last but not least, because we all either want to get laid or just get plain lonely, it seems that single people (besides those Renaissance men who are “finding themselves”) perpetually desire to find a partner, someone to share their time with, someone who will ignore their awkwardness. This is to such a point where it’s the only thing that some teenage girls blog about and what most young men will lament.

So, Michael Scott. Here’s one girl who’s telling your fictional ass that you’re not alone.