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| Defining Greatness What really matters? Looking for Life Purpose |
| Heal your Heart - Love your Body - Live your Joy! Simply Stunning! A Profound and Beautiful experience 3 guided meditations on one CD. Access higher wisdom, intuition and insights. Change habits, release fears and activate healing energies. Buy now Click CD's for more info. Read what others say Sound samples and instant downloads (only about $1 - $2 per track) |
Then there's the cases where something deserving of being remembered is forgotten, while something of
far less value actually IS revered. Most people would agree that the Beatles are certainly our current era's
best shots are becoming musically immortal in centuries to come. But what if someone of lesser current
accomplishment is remembered instead? What would you do if Ashleigh Simpson is the representative that
folks in the 30th century refer back to as the most important musical representative of our time on this
dusty ball of rock called Earth? Many of you probably think that concept is blasphemous.. but pick up an
Encyclopedia and you'll see people of far greater stature and importance in their time who you've never
heard of, even in history class.
So, lets pull this discussion back to what's really important: You and me. The truth is that most of us can't
be the most talented, attractive, athletic or even the most healthy to rank with the "greats" of our era. But
there is one thing that each of us can do, no matter what our foibles or weaknesses are. We can be happy.
In fact, we can all be as happy as we choose to be. We can probably be happier than the most famous
"great" people in history. Take advantage of that gift.
Many of us spend a great deal of our lives miserable trying to achieve whatever goals we have that are
often just slightly out of our reach. Sometimes it's because we're just not good enough. Sometimes it's
because someone treated us unfairly. Sometimes it's because we just have horrible timing and sometimes
we're just not lucky. But while we torment ourselves in that pursuit of fame (or "greatness") we're missing
out on the one thing we can actually control ourselves. We can be happy. We can avoid the things that we
dislike while doing as many things that will make us happy as possible. Think of it this way: if you have a
100% chance of living a happy life in obscurity, or a 1 in several billion chance of being remembered at all
by the masses 200 years from now while being unhappy most of your life, which is a better option? Is the
pursuit of temporary greatness really worth blowing the one shot we all get at happiness while we're alive?
So the bottom line for me is, if pursuing a famous career or a work of art or a meaningful task makes you
happy, then by all means keep doing it. In fact, find ways to do it more. But, if the stress of trying to
become "great" is a bummer, if it means you get to spend less time with people you love, or if it means that
you have to miss out on a lot of happiness you could be having right now, it's not worth it. If you have a
great time creating bizarre music that will never be commercially recognized, so instead you force yourself
to write country ballads.. stop it. If you love playing music with your high school friends but they aren't
good enough to get a record deal, so instead you're thinking of blowing them off and finding "pros" to
pursue your career with, don't do it. If you're going out on tour while your young child is taking her first
steps.. what the hell are you thinking? If you miss out on all the things that could make you happy today,
will the "greatness" you might achieve be worth it?
Some of us can effortlessly do "great" things. More of us spend a lot of time trying to be great at one thing
we'll always fail at, while missing the chance to be truly great doing something else entirely and better yet,
to be very happy while doing it. I say choose happiness. It's not worth giving up that sure thing so some
day you can be a few lines of text on the shelf of some dusty book, or worse some forgotten computer
code on some spaceship library in the next millennium.
Learn, Succeed, Thrive. We're All In This Together!
www.reinventingmyself.com/greatness.html
far less value actually IS revered. Most people would agree that the Beatles are certainly our current era's
best shots are becoming musically immortal in centuries to come. But what if someone of lesser current
accomplishment is remembered instead? What would you do if Ashleigh Simpson is the representative that
folks in the 30th century refer back to as the most important musical representative of our time on this
dusty ball of rock called Earth? Many of you probably think that concept is blasphemous.. but pick up an
Encyclopedia and you'll see people of far greater stature and importance in their time who you've never
heard of, even in history class.
So, lets pull this discussion back to what's really important: You and me. The truth is that most of us can't
be the most talented, attractive, athletic or even the most healthy to rank with the "greats" of our era. But
there is one thing that each of us can do, no matter what our foibles or weaknesses are. We can be happy.
In fact, we can all be as happy as we choose to be. We can probably be happier than the most famous
"great" people in history. Take advantage of that gift.
Many of us spend a great deal of our lives miserable trying to achieve whatever goals we have that are
often just slightly out of our reach. Sometimes it's because we're just not good enough. Sometimes it's
because someone treated us unfairly. Sometimes it's because we just have horrible timing and sometimes
we're just not lucky. But while we torment ourselves in that pursuit of fame (or "greatness") we're missing
out on the one thing we can actually control ourselves. We can be happy. We can avoid the things that we
dislike while doing as many things that will make us happy as possible. Think of it this way: if you have a
100% chance of living a happy life in obscurity, or a 1 in several billion chance of being remembered at all
by the masses 200 years from now while being unhappy most of your life, which is a better option? Is the
pursuit of temporary greatness really worth blowing the one shot we all get at happiness while we're alive?
So the bottom line for me is, if pursuing a famous career or a work of art or a meaningful task makes you
happy, then by all means keep doing it. In fact, find ways to do it more. But, if the stress of trying to
become "great" is a bummer, if it means you get to spend less time with people you love, or if it means that
you have to miss out on a lot of happiness you could be having right now, it's not worth it. If you have a
great time creating bizarre music that will never be commercially recognized, so instead you force yourself
to write country ballads.. stop it. If you love playing music with your high school friends but they aren't
good enough to get a record deal, so instead you're thinking of blowing them off and finding "pros" to
pursue your career with, don't do it. If you're going out on tour while your young child is taking her first
steps.. what the hell are you thinking? If you miss out on all the things that could make you happy today,
will the "greatness" you might achieve be worth it?
Some of us can effortlessly do "great" things. More of us spend a lot of time trying to be great at one thing
we'll always fail at, while missing the chance to be truly great doing something else entirely and better yet,
to be very happy while doing it. I say choose happiness. It's not worth giving up that sure thing so some
day you can be a few lines of text on the shelf of some dusty book, or worse some forgotten computer
code on some spaceship library in the next millennium.
Learn, Succeed, Thrive. We're All In This Together!
www.reinventingmyself.com/greatness.html
| Simply Stunning! A Profound and Beautiful experience Instant downloads (only about $1 per track) Buy now Click CD's for more info. Read what others say Click cover for info |
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| Heal your Heart, Love your Body and Live your Joy! Reinventing Myself by Sonya Green is now available in paperback or as an ebook. Click the book cover to find out more. |
Welcome to Just Plain Notes!
Just Plain Notes: Volume 1.157, March 27, 2006
Written by Brian Austin Whitney
Visit the Website: www.jpfolks.com
***************************************************
Just Plain Quotes:
"Happiness makes up in height for what it lacks in length." -Robert Frost
"The foolish man seeks happiness in the distance, the wise grows it under his
feet." -James Oppenheim
:Happiness is not a station you arrive at, but a manner of traveling." -Margaret
Lee Runbeck
"We can't all be the most talented, attractive, athletic or even the most healthy.
But we can all be as happy as we choose to be. Take advantage of that gift."
-Brian Austin Whitney
My Take:
Some of my friends were having a discussion on what is "greatness" and when
the term should be applied. Some folks had criteria's and others insisted that it
was all in the eye of the beholder. Still others lamented that no matter how you
determined it, they were pretty sure that "greatness" would never be a word
used to describe them. (Yeah.. I know.. self confidence has never been a
trademark of the average artist.. but I digress). As I participated in the
discussion, it occurred to me that whether or not your work or talent will ever
be considered "great" is perhaps not even the most important thing. In fact, I
think that designation, even if widely agreed upon, is highly overrated.
How often do we use or hear the word "great?" Someone has "great" talent.
Someone is "great" looking. Someone is a "great" athlete. Someone feels
"great." If you considered how easily the word is tossed around, you'd probably
surmise that for most people "great" really only means anything better than
horrible. But, semantics aside, I think even when the word lives up to it's
definition, it still might be meaningless. To give a compelling example of my view
on this, you'll need to find a copy of the Encyclopedia Britannica. (If you don't
happen to have a dusty version on a bookshelf or on a CD ROM that came
free with your computer, then you'll have to take my word for it if you're not
motivated enough to browse it online).
You can turn to nearly any page of any volume of the EB and you'll find tales of
greatness. You'll find people who were universally loved (or hated) who saved
civilizations nearly single handedly, or wiped them out of existence with ferocity.
You'll find people who invented and discovered things that have saved millions
of lives and you'll find pop culture icons from throughout history that people
swooned over in the streets. And what will a lot these "great" people have in
common? For the most part, you will not have heard of any of them. Sure, if
you happen to be an expert in a particular field, you might know who invented
something or created a process or wrote a famous book or poem. You might
vaguely remember a few from your college days or a school book report. But,
far more often, you truly will wonder how in the heck someone so dominant in
every way in their day has been forgotten in the dust of time. If you think about
that, it sort of makes a relentless pursuit of a hit pop or country song a bit
shallow doesn't it? After all, if someone who saved an entire civilization doesn't
rate a blip on our mental radar screen, do you really think that your major
career success will rate much in a few dozen years, let alone few hundred or a
few thousand? Ah.. something to think about isn't it?
Just Plain Notes: Volume 1.157, March 27, 2006
Written by Brian Austin Whitney
Visit the Website: www.jpfolks.com
***************************************************
Just Plain Quotes:
"Happiness makes up in height for what it lacks in length." -Robert Frost
"The foolish man seeks happiness in the distance, the wise grows it under his
feet." -James Oppenheim
:Happiness is not a station you arrive at, but a manner of traveling." -Margaret
Lee Runbeck
"We can't all be the most talented, attractive, athletic or even the most healthy.
But we can all be as happy as we choose to be. Take advantage of that gift."
-Brian Austin Whitney
My Take:
Some of my friends were having a discussion on what is "greatness" and when
the term should be applied. Some folks had criteria's and others insisted that it
was all in the eye of the beholder. Still others lamented that no matter how you
determined it, they were pretty sure that "greatness" would never be a word
used to describe them. (Yeah.. I know.. self confidence has never been a
trademark of the average artist.. but I digress). As I participated in the
discussion, it occurred to me that whether or not your work or talent will ever
be considered "great" is perhaps not even the most important thing. In fact, I
think that designation, even if widely agreed upon, is highly overrated.
How often do we use or hear the word "great?" Someone has "great" talent.
Someone is "great" looking. Someone is a "great" athlete. Someone feels
"great." If you considered how easily the word is tossed around, you'd probably
surmise that for most people "great" really only means anything better than
horrible. But, semantics aside, I think even when the word lives up to it's
definition, it still might be meaningless. To give a compelling example of my view
on this, you'll need to find a copy of the Encyclopedia Britannica. (If you don't
happen to have a dusty version on a bookshelf or on a CD ROM that came
free with your computer, then you'll have to take my word for it if you're not
motivated enough to browse it online).
You can turn to nearly any page of any volume of the EB and you'll find tales of
greatness. You'll find people who were universally loved (or hated) who saved
civilizations nearly single handedly, or wiped them out of existence with ferocity.
You'll find people who invented and discovered things that have saved millions
of lives and you'll find pop culture icons from throughout history that people
swooned over in the streets. And what will a lot these "great" people have in
common? For the most part, you will not have heard of any of them. Sure, if
you happen to be an expert in a particular field, you might know who invented
something or created a process or wrote a famous book or poem. You might
vaguely remember a few from your college days or a school book report. But,
far more often, you truly will wonder how in the heck someone so dominant in
every way in their day has been forgotten in the dust of time. If you think about
that, it sort of makes a relentless pursuit of a hit pop or country song a bit
shallow doesn't it? After all, if someone who saved an entire civilization doesn't
rate a blip on our mental radar screen, do you really think that your major
career success will rate much in a few dozen years, let alone few hundred or a
few thousand? Ah.. something to think about isn't it?
| These articles are now available in paperback. Click the book cover to find out more. Paypal secure payment. |
| EBook also available for only $8 |
