And they’re all rooted in Self-Awareness.
“1. You aren’t special.
You are replaceable.
Your problems aren’t unique.
The world owes you nothing.
Your value is determined by the impact you have on others and YOU are in charge of your success &/or Failure.”
-Ray Zingler on Twitter
“Damn. That sounds harsh.”
I thought so too as an immature, selfish young man who lacked self-awareness.
But then I learned not only how true those 5 valuable lessons are, but how freeing they are as well.
Once I came to learn that the game is played on an unlevel, unfair playing surface, things became a lot easier for me.
Not in the sense that I don’t have to work my ass off every day, but recognizing that I’m not special, I am replaceable, my problems aren’t unique, the world owes me nothing, my value is determined by the impact I have on others, and I am responsible for my success or failure, has allowed me to play the game from a different vantage point.
See I’ve already established the above to be (maybe some would argue to be painfully) true and because I acknowledge these truths, the above no longer get to be excuses I can make in my life in an effort to minimize personal responsibility.
Thinking I’m special or thinking my problems are unique while KNOWING they are not would be like kicking a wall and then blaming the wall. It just wouldn’t make sense.
And for those who think I am minimizing my own self-worth (or anybody else’s) I assure you I am not.
If anything, the acknowledgement of these truths increases self-worth because instead of hiding behind the blanket of how you wish reality was, you’re accepting reality and when you accept reality, you get to improve your situation because you’re now playing the game as it really is.
Just take a look around at people.
You know who I’m talking about.
People who are always “oh woe is me. Life is unfair. You just don’t understand, my situation is different..”
The reason those people are (oftentimes forever) stuck is because they are playing the game the way they wish it was designed and not accepting and playing it the way it really is.
This is why I’ll forever believe self-awareness to be one of the most important, life changing character traits a human being can have.
Once you come to understand it’s up to you and nobody is coming to save you. You can really start to become a difference maker.
