I’ve been trying to track down some of my older blog posts from back in the days when I was coding my own CMS platform over at CycleSixtySix.com. I’ve found a few that were worth revisiting. The following are some of the ones I found worthy.
originally written by: Sean | posted on: 08/01/2003
Recently I read an interesting article regarding ‘Fantasy Ideology’.
At the risk of oversimplifying, this type of ideology revolves around the idea that any person, or group of people, can believe so strongly in their own perspective that they hold it as an absolute truth. This is also known as not being able to see “the forest for the trees”, or thinking that the world revolves around oneself.
This concept plays out interestingly in my interaction with highschool students. This is not to say that such ideology is non-existent in people over the age of 18. However, I am not exposed to it quite as often as I am while coaching.
I will not pretend that I have any answers to the “why” of this situation. However, Iwould like to expound on it somewhat.
The primary danger of seeing one’s self as the center of the universe, is life mutating into a distorted stage-play. All other people are devalued into a supporting cast for the magical play of “Me, Myself, and I”. Such interaction and devaluation of another person’s individuality tends to, at best, damage, at worst, remove entirely the lessons that can be learned from that person.
Worse yet, people are the pinnacle of chaotic variables. There is nothing LESS predictable than the human spirit. Therefore, as I write the script to the play that is my world, others have no idea that they are:
- merely characters
- what their next line should be
It is then inevitable that the people I interact with will NOT act in the ways that I had scripted them.
When this occurs, my entire play -my ideology- is then disturbed, and perspective shaken. To combat this, 99.9% of the time an attitude of victimhood is adopted. Simply put, when the concept of the world is taken outside of how I think it SHOULD be, then the reaction is to feel like things happen TO ME without my control.
This is, of course, an absurd notion and completely incorrect. EVERYTHING that happens in life operates under a “cause and effect” relationship. What you choose to do today impacts what will happen tomorrow. At times, things do indeed happen TO a person. However, in these times, people are forged by how the react. If you lament your situation, and your ideology is such that you believe you are a victim, you become defined by your situation. Some scenarios that I’m sure you see everyday (from guys and girls):
- I failed the test because the teacher hates me.
- I’m on the bench because coach hates me.
- I don’t have enough time. People want too much from me.
- I’m not strong/fast/big enough, so I can’t do what I’m being asked to do.
The flipside of this coin are those people who are MOTIVATED by the things that happen to them. They realize that what happens today is a direct effect of a choice made yesterday. They are not fooled into thinking that the world revolves around them, and they DO control their environment. Therefore, they choose to MAKE things happen, instead of letting things happen to them.
Let’s revisit the same scenarios, but from the motivated perspective:
- I failed the test because I really didn’t spend much time studying. For the next test I’ll dedicate at least 2 hours a night to reviewing the material.
- I’m on the bench because I really haven’t given 110% at practice. I’ve not been running my hardest, trying my best. If I want to compete I will fight harder to improve, and never let anything hold me back.
- I don’t have enough time. If I stop spending two hours every night online chatting, or if I hang up the phone every night by 8:00, I can gain almost 20 extra hours of productivity per week. If I accomplish all of my tasks in a prompt and efficient manner, things won’t pile up and I’ll have plenty of time for the next thing. If I do them right the FIRST TIME, I won’t lose time repeating things I’ve already done.
- I’m not strong/fast/big enough. I need to work harder because while things are difficult now, if I don’t work they’ll never get easy.
The dangers of a self-centered perspective are far-reaching and long lasting. However, the benefits choosing to be aware of causal relationships, recognizing that YOU control what happens to yourself, are equally far-reaching and lasting. The decsion you must make, what seperates the Diesel from the roadkill, do you want to make things happen, or have them happen without you? Is it your world, or is it you against the world? Have you REALLY given all you can? Have you really been honest with yourself in the effort you put forth every day?? Will you get lost in your own fantasy ideology, or will you live according to reality?
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