First, a little of my take on the substance abuse/mental illness/pill promotion topic...
I think pills are a great crutch for those that need them. I think they're marketed, overwhelmingly, to those who don't. The old saying "An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure" is never more apropos than here. We live in a society that incentivizes weakness and disincentivizes strength. That means we'll, collectively, have more and more once-typical scenarios in our lives suddenly become dire and traumatic. Where grit once was we'll now find anxiety. There is nothing to suggest this is going to change anytime soon, too.
I don't want to "save the world". I want to aid those who wish to save themselves. A saying I use in my academy is "I only want to feed the hungry". So, those who refuse to acknowledge their own power aren't going to find any argument from me. Those who cower from once natural and common obstacles in life won't find me convincing them to overcome, either.
I look at the universe through a Tribalnomics lens. What it's done is give me a perspective that recognizes both the beauty and power our universe gifts us with every beat in time.
All that being said, let's get on to the list:
If you've been following my systems for any length of time you know I define "strength" as a commitment to climbing one's ladder of personal power (development). Alternatively, I define "weakness" as a refusal to climb one's ladder.
What this mean is twofold.
First, at no point does the ladder rung you're currently on matter when choosing to be strong. Wherever you are, well, you are. Every situation has inherent opportunities for climbing the ladder.
Secondly, all being strong takes is a commitment! If you're investing the effort to climb, you get put on the strong list. It's that simple.
The "mama bears" of our society are all too eager to point out how unfair your life is, never acknowledging how doing so robs you of your power.
Wanna be strong? Don't let them. Now, start climbing!
Our brains evolved into the conscious, thinking machines they are less than a million years ago and, as Uncle Ben said in Spiderman, "With great power comes great responsibility".
What this means for us is we're the first species of animal to create imaginary predators, as in, we have evolutionary based survival responses to threats that only exist in our minds. From paying the bills, getting a girlfriend, going for a promotion at work, or finding new job, we feel like we are "running from the lion" constantly. The price we pay is a lopsided, stressed-out relationship with our reality.
Therefore, it's important to remember what machine we've been developing for millions of years before our big, fancy, complex brains: our bodies.
Our bodies are an intricate machine of stimulated responses, with hormones that are ready and willing to support our best efforts. Dopamine, serotonin, endorphins...the list goes on. All these hormones are not only on your side, but respond to habits that are in your control, like physical activity, diet, and rest.
Pharmaceutical companies are equipped with history's most powerful weapons to convince you to sabotage your physical power these days. Our food supply is largely artificial now as well. Unhealthy foods, drugs for every condition there is, TV shows about other people’s lives, and now even virtual reality software that make you feel like you're actually outside. Ugh. Our bodies are suffering as a result of all of these things.
Your body is a survival machine and has an entire infrastructure dedicated to building your power. My advice? Get up, get out, and MOVE!
"Oh, so be around people, MC?"
Well, yeah, but that's hardly the big picture.
People have evolved to interact with others. When we don't, we suffer the consequences. It's why we go crazy in solitary confinement, develop stress disorders when isolated (or even just "lonely"), and it can mount one heck of a case for the organic development of metaphysical constructs.
We have mental power tools that rely solely on our interactions. Think about what parents would do for their children, or men for their brothers. We simply become "more of ourselves" when stimulated by engaging others.
This isn't a personality or preference thing, Folks. You need others.
So, how do we fix it? Here are my top 3 ways...
1. Tribal Alliances
Well, of course Tribe is a great start. Finding those that do the things that you find not only compatible, but inspiring and fulfilling.
2. Transcendent Alliances
These are the relationships we have with the Gods/God/Universe/Earth, etc. These relationships allow for both honor and love to exist in isolation. Coaching students of mine work diligently on this aspect of their mindset and, no, one doesn't need to believe in the supernatural to harness this power.
3. Natural Alliances
This is a respect for the lives and energies of those living, natural entities around us. From wildlife to all the trees in the forest, we're not alone on earth.
The true master of his destiny is he who walks the path of his choosing.
Never in history have so many people been led to anchor their self-worth to the approvals and praises of the disconnected.
A Master understands where the true power lies in his life, never diminishing virtue to the superficial.
Money and fame are metrics will never be tied to the climbing of one's ladder of personal power. Today people act like wealthy or famous people don't kill themselves, too. Like all those with a million+ "virtual friends" aren't on every anti-reality med available.
Every man should pursue that which is transcendent in its virtue, not fads or popularity contests. A Master on Mission never seeks permission from strangers!
Honor, Discipline, Pressure...these are the pursuits of the purposeful life of a Master.
All Pain is Training.
Name me one virtuous, admirable ability you possess that did not come by way of some arduous, often painful, process?
From late-night cramming for a test, to the personal record weight on the bar as you squat it, to the restrictive reality we endure when saving money, we must acknowledge that pain gives us access to a perennial better version of ourselves.
Nietzsche said, "That which does not kill us, makes us stronger".
We know that it's difficult to show gratitude for the pain at the time. As humans, we often feel more anxiety and stress in the anticipation of pain than the pain itself. Just feel the pain so you can use it. Suffering, by contrast, is both optional and unnecessary.
So, what's the answer? Ritualize the Pressure.
Whatever it is, whatever it takes, pressurize yourself regularly enough that you aren't a hostage to your emotional boogeymen when something goes wrong.
Rich people get divorced, become addicted to drugs, and kill themselves, too, ya know!
In my experience, folks make money their mission because of two main reasons:
1. They follow the modeled morality and, in turn, behavior of others.
We've all heard the saying "Keeping up with the Jones's" to measure our wealth and success against others (or at least what others have us perceive about their wealth) as a benchmark for what should be the goals for our living standards.
The problem is that, firstly, what others have is a far cry from what they allow you to see and, secondly, why are we defining ourselves through the lenses of others in the first place? This is a miserable mental slavery you’re subjecting yourself to.
2. Their current pressures are financial.
MC Metaphor, incoming...Imagine for a moment that you're starving in the middle of a desert. Your hunger pains are unbearable. Your vision's compromised. Your throat feels like it's lined with sandpaper. Suddenly, you see a snake basking on a stone in the sun. You hurl a rock at it and kill it. Eating it brings you the most incredible surge of euphoria you've ever experienced. You're no longer hungry.
Now, let me ask you: Do you think that for the rest of your life, when you're hungry, you need to find a snake on a rock?
I've mentioned before how hard it is to see your current challenges as the building blocks of the more powerful you. When the overwhelming majority of those pressures are financial, we tend to identify money as the catch-all fix-all that will wipe all your worries away.
Money becomes their snake on a stone.
To simplify, when we have needs and money is how we get them, NEVER forget the needs, and NEVER think money's the only way to get them! Why? You'll embark on a journey that may bring all of the money, but never all of the "needs"!
Life is the story we tell ourselves about living.
To choose strength over weakness is to tell a story of the process that continues to forge us with each passing day.
How we choose to relate to our past, then, should reflect such a process.
There is no power in retelling the tale of a lesser you. There's no improvement to be gained from the adventures of a victim.
The strong and powerful speak of past investments, sacrifices, victories, and growth. They speak of the cost of being more and put shame on those who would choose a lesser path.
There isn't one thing you could've experienced to which I couldn't respond, "And how did that make you stronger?".
I only allow power from my past. It's the stronger choice.
There is nothing more effective at keeping a man in touch with his strengths than a process of gratitude for all that has given them to him.
It's my greatest argument for the transcendent alliances mentioned in this series, in that it allows you (no matter how exiled you may feel) to always have someone to thank for all that you know to be powerful.
There isn't one gift you possess that isn't another's wish. Be grateful.
Every challenge is an opportunity to become more. Be grateful.
We are never alone. Be grateful.
Those who would argue against such a system look to remain undefeated in life, as we can only ever lose what we wager. What these saboteurs fail to realize is our very lives have already been wagered for us.
Why not, then, invest our power into the alliances we build and all the synergies that come with them?
This is what Gratitude brings to the adventure. Be grateful that it does.
Forgiveness is the forfeit of an alliance with negativity. If there is a consequence justly to be had, have it.
Once completed, though, what is the argument for retaining some form of contempt over the issue? I've yet to find a legitimate one, myself.
I find that there are two major reasons why folks fall in love with and get addicted to "holding on.”
1. They feel the matter is unsettled. The solution, of course, is to, well...settle it. Many people, however, just can't seem to accept that it's that simple. It is. The issue is that most people just don't have the commitment or courage to do what they feel is just, accept the limitations of their ability to do so, and/or admit they've no control over the fact that emotion is holding them hostage (which has nothing to do with the issue itself).
2. They've got no better investment to place their time and energy. Let's say your neighbor, whom you've never gotten along with, scratches your car while parking and you find yourself to be livid over the issue. What, exactly, validates your anger? Is there a level of emotion that, when met, fixes the car? Was someone scratching your car while parking impossible? Now, imagine you're getting your shoes on to go outside to tear your neighbor a new one, your phone rings and it's your wife saying she just won a million bucks in the lottery? Would you care about the scratch in your care anymore?
People feel much more comfortable dwelling on the past because there's nothing in front of them to focus on. Even if there were, they aren't concerned because they're not truly interested in moving forward.
If you've been wronged, pursue justice. Find a way to bring an equilibrium back to the circumstances. If such a pursuit is not possible, then accept that the universe isn't too concerned with your individual plight.
Lastly, work to never make a bad situation worse by feeling bad about it.
In my representation of tribal alliances in the form of growing, concentric circles, right smack in the middle is a point. That point is you. Every alliance you will ever make brings with it the relationship you've built with your tribe of one: yourself
In any alliance, we look to honor mission and respect the expiration date. The mission is a representation of all that it takes to fulfill the development of becoming yourself. The real, authentic you. The most powerful version of you.
As for the expiration date, that is the need that we all must make peace with our own mortality. We understand that this journey must one day end. We must ritualize the process of developing an unbreakable respect for that reality.
Following the blueprint of tribe when building a relationship with oneself will lead to an understanding, a loyalty, and eventually, a love that no circumstance can break.
Stay on Mission,
MC
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