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Public Service Announcement
Mar. 20th, 2008 09:35 amThe world pretty much sucks right now.
I look around me, and I see a gray sky. I see unhappy people - my loved ones, my friends, my coworkers. Every single person is beset from high and low. Our governmental policies, our economy, Problems at work, problems at home, problems with friends. Problems all over the place. On my way to work, I was listening to the radio. Fully half the songs had the word "hate", "kill" or "pain" in them.
One, particularly poignant - John Mayer's "Waiting on the World to Change", which to me reads very much as an anthem to giving up until someone else fixes the problem.
There's a word for this: depression. Individually and collectively, we are depressed. I expect this isn't news to anyone. What does seem to be news is that, despite what Mr. Mayer may think, you can do something about it, and giving up sure as heck doesn't help.
Stop being mean. Stop playing tit-for-tat games at work. Get out of your own head, and look at how the people around you feel. Think before you speak. Think about whether the things you put in that e-mail are going to cause pain. You've got this huge wad of nerve cells in your cranium - use them. Listen to Yoda, and remember that the negative path is faster, sure, but it dead ends, and isn't sustainable.
Consider all the people you've spoken to in the last week. Consider each in turn, and imagine that person has passed away. They were in a car accident, or even better, they took their own life. If that person took their own life, would you regret your most recent interaction with them?
If you would, you were a jerk. Don't friggin' deny it, don't try rationalize it. I know you didn't mean it, but that isn't an excuse. Thoughtlessness isn't a valid justification. Just go and apologize. Now. You made a mistake, so now make it better. The world is harsh enough without us being jerks to each other.
That works both ways - if you didn't mean to be a jerk, that person who was rotten to you probably didn't mean it, at least not personally. They are reacting not just to you, but to the sum total of the crap around them. Assume they are at least as poorly off as you are, and deal with them accordingly.
Would it make your day better to have a coworker come up to you, out of the blue, and tell you they like working with you? Would you like to see a note from a friend, or an acquaintance just saying they like you?
Well, then by all the powers, why aren't you doing this for your coworkers, your friends? Where, in all the world, is there a person who can't make use of a sincere kindly word?
It is the Golden Rule, people, recognized by pretty much every major religious, spiritual, and moral code on the planet. The damn thing works, and works well. Just apply it. Now.
I look around me, and I see a gray sky. I see unhappy people - my loved ones, my friends, my coworkers. Every single person is beset from high and low. Our governmental policies, our economy, Problems at work, problems at home, problems with friends. Problems all over the place. On my way to work, I was listening to the radio. Fully half the songs had the word "hate", "kill" or "pain" in them.
One, particularly poignant - John Mayer's "Waiting on the World to Change", which to me reads very much as an anthem to giving up until someone else fixes the problem.
There's a word for this: depression. Individually and collectively, we are depressed. I expect this isn't news to anyone. What does seem to be news is that, despite what Mr. Mayer may think, you can do something about it, and giving up sure as heck doesn't help.
Stop being mean. Stop playing tit-for-tat games at work. Get out of your own head, and look at how the people around you feel. Think before you speak. Think about whether the things you put in that e-mail are going to cause pain. You've got this huge wad of nerve cells in your cranium - use them. Listen to Yoda, and remember that the negative path is faster, sure, but it dead ends, and isn't sustainable.
Consider all the people you've spoken to in the last week. Consider each in turn, and imagine that person has passed away. They were in a car accident, or even better, they took their own life. If that person took their own life, would you regret your most recent interaction with them?
If you would, you were a jerk. Don't friggin' deny it, don't try rationalize it. I know you didn't mean it, but that isn't an excuse. Thoughtlessness isn't a valid justification. Just go and apologize. Now. You made a mistake, so now make it better. The world is harsh enough without us being jerks to each other.
That works both ways - if you didn't mean to be a jerk, that person who was rotten to you probably didn't mean it, at least not personally. They are reacting not just to you, but to the sum total of the crap around them. Assume they are at least as poorly off as you are, and deal with them accordingly.
Would it make your day better to have a coworker come up to you, out of the blue, and tell you they like working with you? Would you like to see a note from a friend, or an acquaintance just saying they like you?
Well, then by all the powers, why aren't you doing this for your coworkers, your friends? Where, in all the world, is there a person who can't make use of a sincere kindly word?
It is the Golden Rule, people, recognized by pretty much every major religious, spiritual, and moral code on the planet. The damn thing works, and works well. Just apply it. Now.
