Blog 3402 – 02.25.2025
Lead, Follow, or Get Out of the Way
In this construct that we call reality there are many who would define us as their customer, follower, or slave. And many as well would define themselves by their jobs, their bank account, the number of friends that they have on social media, the number of likes that they get when they post, or their number of followers (the number of people they influence.) One of my favorite books, How To Win Friends and Influence People, published in 1936 by Dale Carnegie, is a classic self-help guide to making friends and influencing people in a caring and genuine way. It is nothing like a more recent book called The Art of the Deal which someone has said should more appropriately be called The Art of the Con or The Art of the Steal. Only if our motivation for making friends and influencing people is for the good of the Universe, ourselves, and everyone everywhere can it produce a win/win for all parties.
How we see ourself is in large part a reflection of how we see others. Are others merely customers to sell to, rubes to be taken in, inferiors to be enslaved to create wealth and security for us, or lackeys who only live to stroke our egos?
Proverbs says, “As a man thinks in his heart so is he.” If one thinks themselves powerless and a victim then that will appear to be their reality. We alone decide our reality even as the final lines of the poem Invictus and the first lines of todays song both say:
I am the master of my fate
The Captain of my soul.
“No matter what they tell us,
No matter what they do,
No matter what they teach us
What we believe is true.”
Another thought provoking song that I quoted recently says, “Follow me, like you used to do. I still can show you who you are.”
Your friend and fellow traveler,
David White
No Matter What
theencouragingword 