As usual I should be sleeping- But I am not
I like blogging for many reasons. One of the primary is that this gives me a forum to voice my thoughts and feelings on many issues. It is something that I think is very important because I don’t like to not understand why I feel a certain way about something. I think that it is very healthy to understand why you take a certain position on item A,B or C.
It helps me to understand myself better. I won’t write all this crap down in a notebook, I just won’t do it. It is not me, but this forum is something that I’ll engage in. And one of the things that I think is worth mentioning is that if you want to look your darker secrets in the eye, write them down and then read about them.
I share myself here for the primary purpose of growth and understanding. It sounds nutty, but it is true.
So here are a couple of nuggets. I have always wanted to be the person who asked the most insightful questions, the one that made you stop in your tracks and say, “whoa.” Maybe it is my ego, maybe it is something else, but it is something that I wanted to do.
I say wanted to do because over the course of time I have learned that there are many people who are smarter and better at many things than I. And over time I have accepted this, it is ok with me. That doesn’t mean that I give up, just that I accept that Jack’s best is not always going to be as good as someone else. It doesn’t mean much and it doesn’t denigrate me as a person.
And here is the lesson that I want to pass along to my children. I play basketball 2-3 times a week. It is usually with the same group of guys. There are a number who are better than I am. And not just by a little, but by a lot. They are more talented and always will be.
But one thing that I am proud of is that I am always one of the players that people want on their team. They want me because I am a blue-collar worker on the court. I work harder than the other guy and I am constantly trying to leverage that hard work into an advantage.
This is how you compensate for not being as talented, you work hard. And you endure and persevere, tenacity will lead to good things. And the reason that it does is because many people don’t have the discipline/will to work that hard.
To my children I charge them with this work ethic. There will be people who will be smarter and more talented. There will be people who have the complete package, talent and a solid work ethic. But if you work hard there are dividends, rewards that are not always immediately evident.
To my children I say that this method will lead you to a place in which you can sleep comfortably at night, secure in the knowledge that you tried your best to succeed.
It is not profound, nor particularly insightful, but it is a proven method.
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