My Father was a decent bloke. Brought up on the tough side of town the youngest brother of a large family and became the black sheep of his family by escaping poverty and becoming a professional person. In many ways a successful man albeit in moderation.
But like many of his generation and sadly often my own, my father seems stuck in an unbreakable mindset that clings to beliefs tested by nothing other than simple dogma, almost a wish to remain ignorant of things even when the lightest of research would tell him otherwise. Often when I look at the younger generation too, guys in their twenty something’s, many of them now fully believe what they are told by TV, School, the Government and their parents, even when their direct experience should tell them something else.
However, its one particular belief that my Dad held, one he repeated over and over many times during my youth, that I wish to dissect and put forward an alternative viewpoint.
“People don’t ever really change” he would say and then go into his reasoning of how they may appear to but their instincts are always the same.
This may be true for many but actually Re invention is the mother of change. The very idea put forward here is in my view, completely false, one based on a very narrow view of life, possibly down to experience mixed with some personal dissatisfaction. A rephrase though, one that is closer to the truth would be a statement something more like this:
People rarely change unless they are forced to. Change can happen by terrible events, exceptional circumstance or, importantly, if they are exceptional people with an iron will, and a genuine desire to mould themselves into the person they wish to be, the person they see in their minds eye.
Did you ever watch “Enter The Dragon”, Do you remember MR HAN?
We are unique, gentlemen, in that we create ourselves… through long years of rigorous training, sacrifice, denial, pain. We forge our bodies in the fire of our will.
MR HAN; Enter The Dragon
This is something that all Martial Artists should understand but only if we manage to not only cross the gates of the temple but step back out on the other side, the master of ourselves, in body, mind and spirit.
To Re invent oneself is a long process and takes not only a wish but a will. But it is true that the weak can become strong, the ignorant can become wise and the poor can become rich, its all about mindset.
The older people get the more they naturally resist change, it seems just too difficult for many people, much of the time. Children and young people, at least for a time have an opportunity to mould into who they want to be, They look to role models, influences and their environment for opportunities to find their path, a blend of both nature & nurture right?
Then, at some point in their development they stop that process get comfortable with who they think they are. For many development ends there, but it really doesn’t have to be that way. People have an ability to reinvent themselves, to grow and change behaviour, become stronger, faster, fitter of mind and body, to re think their position in the world and change direction….
The idea my old man had may well be true for many, but this view is for those who refuse to take the more difficult path or even acknowledge its existence. For some of us we can remain connected to that belief we had as children, the belief that we can be whoever we want, we just need to want it bad enough. We all can learn new things and new ways of being and if we want it enough, we can evolve into the person we had in mind. We can look the way we want to look, fuck the way we want to fuck (Fight Club)…..If we can be that person in our mind and grow into the role.
The people who can reinvent themselves repeatedly may well to a degree, be the exceptions not the norm, but if we are wishing to lead a more satisfying life then we often will require the ability to make big changes in order to grow. It is this ability that can help us adapt to new environments, build our own realities and most importantly to realise our dreams and ambitions. So to end this article, my advice is to listen to MR HAN not to my old man.
The Anarchist Entrepreneur 