They had to pop the hinges off my bedroom door and rush me to the hospital otherwise I would likely have died. After all, as a teen I did not view suicide as a cop-out or an act of selfish cowardice as I do now; back then – in the wake of a parent’s passing – my continual fault finding with “the merry-go-round” of life, compounded by obvious depression, had produced a seemingly inescapable abyss. It was, perhaps, the most difficult of times for me, and a chapter that was entirely forging. Of course now I am glad my attempt was in vain. I really began to compulsively analyze.
I have not lost an analytical approach to collective existence and my general angst with society. I see human duality, hypocrisy, greed, hatred, ignorance, vanity (and on and on) everywhere, yet I do not allow this awareness to hinder my motivation, passion for living, and the manner of my mental/emotional preparation to meet and exceed my goals. I do understand that in this life there simply are many aspects we are not necessarily meant to comprehend. Life is inherently an enigma of sorts. Life is the way we found it.
I was sharing some of this article with my teen as I drove to town. She made an interesting comment about the core values of people and our individual perception of what is of value. We discussed the importance of commitment to our own value set no matter what we see around us. When we do this honestly, we build the footings and foundation for motivation. She is so sharp.
As we drove on, the discussion turned to fear and how it is impossible to live within the mainstream without fear of violence on a personal, or even nuclear level. My daughter spoke of how unfair it is that her generation has so much to fear. As Anthony Robbins states so clearly: “We will go further to avoid fear and pain than we will to gain pleasure.” Interesting. I said to her that I need to cling to an altruistic belief or hope that a core of inner goodness exists in most people and will eventually win out over evils.
So then my daughter mentioned personal responsibility to each other and ourselves, versus society and the masses. I thought that this was an entirely relevant point as well. Regardless of what others do, it is on each of us – individually – to accept responsibility for living and all that this encompasses. For me, this is perhaps near the core of personal integrity, and at the heart of my motives.
Certainly this is a discussion that could go on, but the main point is that it is what we perceive as having value, and our personal sense of responsibility that shapes our character and to a large extent allows us to function positively in a crazy world. Put another way, it is our character that pushes us along – motivates us – more than other factors.
Kurt Turrell (www.KurtTurrell.com) is a business consultant, lifestyle coach, entrepreneur, and author. With over 20 years in hotels, management, education, and life skills development, Kurt is an authority on many areas of business, management, sales and marketing, and business streamlining, as well as helping individuals to achieve abundance and success in all areas of life/living. Go to www.KurtTurrell.com to get “Lifetime Success in 6 Simple Steps” completely free.
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