"The mass of men lead lives of quiet desperation." ....Henry David Thoreau
A personal favorite. It so succinctly speaks volumes.
Thoreau could have chosen more direct words to convey his message. He could have spoken of what "the mass" might be missing in life, or focused on the pain that comes with the inactive desperation, or used some derogatory wording. But what he chose was "quiet desperation". The minimalism of these words and the ability of "quiet" as an adjective to ironically amplify the "desperation". The words play on each other to build and create a higher meaning together, to convey a situation in which I strive to never, eve find myself.
I'll tie this into business, hang with me......
Look around you at work tomorrow. Look at yourself. Happy? Feel as a part of something? Are you a self-actualizing part of a team? Good..now go do it better and try to learn every second.
Are you there to collect your pay? Do you feel trapped? Is your integrity being traded for a paycheck? Want out?
Keep in mind the clearest sign of a bad situation is not so much that you can't live with the situation anymore, but that you can't live with yourself in the situation anymore. It generally boils down to the erosion of integrity.
If you answered yes, then you have the desperation part down. It sucks, but it's not the worst part. The worst part is the "quiet" being added to the "desperation". This suggests one has given in, stopped trying, stopped fighting, possibly stopped growing. Worse than given in, would be given up.
So stop being quiet. Talk about what could be a better situation for you. This can't just be whining or complaining, in whcih case you are just in "bitchy desperation". Make a plan, make a change, take your time, but no more being quiet. Grow. You don't always need to change industries, or give up something that you may be good at to get away from that which is holding you down.
Figure out what can be yours and then go take it.
A personal favorite. It so succinctly speaks volumes.
Thoreau could have chosen more direct words to convey his message. He could have spoken of what "the mass" might be missing in life, or focused on the pain that comes with the inactive desperation, or used some derogatory wording. But what he chose was "quiet desperation". The minimalism of these words and the ability of "quiet" as an adjective to ironically amplify the "desperation". The words play on each other to build and create a higher meaning together, to convey a situation in which I strive to never, eve find myself.
I'll tie this into business, hang with me......
Look around you at work tomorrow. Look at yourself. Happy? Feel as a part of something? Are you a self-actualizing part of a team? Good..now go do it better and try to learn every second.
Are you there to collect your pay? Do you feel trapped? Is your integrity being traded for a paycheck? Want out?
Keep in mind the clearest sign of a bad situation is not so much that you can't live with the situation anymore, but that you can't live with yourself in the situation anymore. It generally boils down to the erosion of integrity.
If you answered yes, then you have the desperation part down. It sucks, but it's not the worst part. The worst part is the "quiet" being added to the "desperation". This suggests one has given in, stopped trying, stopped fighting, possibly stopped growing. Worse than given in, would be given up.
So stop being quiet. Talk about what could be a better situation for you. This can't just be whining or complaining, in whcih case you are just in "bitchy desperation". Make a plan, make a change, take your time, but no more being quiet. Grow. You don't always need to change industries, or give up something that you may be good at to get away from that which is holding you down.
Figure out what can be yours and then go take it.
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