Existential Octathletes

 

Chapter 4

Existential Octathletes 

This chapter compares self-action leaders to decathletes and the exercise of Self-Action Leadership to participation in a decathlon (or biathlon, triathlon, pentathlon, heptathlon, etc.). More specifically, it introduces the concept of an existential OCTATHLON, which would involve eight (8) different events or challenges, and explains why this athletic imagery serves as an apt metaphor to capture the essence of a concept known as Existential Intelligence, which we will define in this chapter, as well as the holistic life balance self-action leaders are encouraged to pursue—and are capable of attaining through the holistic exercise of SAL over time. 

Athletic Metaphors

Personal development teachers and coaches often employ athletic metaphors to illustrate challenges and opportunities that accompany personal and professional journeys in life. We do so not to exclude non-athletes from the discussion, but merely to paint a picture using vivid metaphorical brushstrokes that everyone can understand theoretically, if not practically speaking. 

One age-old athletic metaphor compares difficult work projects, onerous personal challengers, and even life itself to running a marathon. As a former marathoner who has completed the 26.2 mile distance 13 times, I can appreciate and relate to marathon metaphors. However, as a former basketball player, an avid fantasy baseball enthusiast, and a former collegiate middle-distance runner who excelled at the 800 meter distance (less than 2% of the marathon distance), I also recognize that a marathon is only one of many sporting metaphors that can be usefully applied to our lives and careers. 

For example, in the early years of this century, Jim Loehr and Tony Schwartz introduced an alternative paradigm to the traditional marathon metaphor that embraces the management of energy over time as opposed to the management of endurance over distance. According to Loehr and Schwartz, accessing the "Power of Full Engagement" in one's life or career is best achieved by approaching life not as a marathon, but as a "series of sprints," (1) whereby, in addition to enduring to the end of a project, etc. (marathon metaphor), we also focus on the wise and strategic management of our finite energy supplies along the way (sprint metaphor).

Loehr and Schwartz assert further than as a "Corporate Athlete," (2) "we build emotional, mental and spiritual capacity in the same way that we build physical capacity." (3).

An integral component of the SAL Philosophy is the introduction of a new athletic metaphor that builds on the concepts of both energy and endurance management. This holistic cutting-edge concept compares the metaphorical "athlete" (self-action leader) at hand not merely to a distance runner or sprinter, but to both. And it does not stop there. It also metaphorically adds throwing, jumping, and vaulting to the mix. 

Its aim is to develop self-action leaders who can effectively "compete" in not just one or two arenas of human performance, but all of the major ones and come (in time) to excel at them all. This fresh new paradigm postures a self-action leader as an OCTATHLETE, meaning an existential "athlete" that focuses on and "competes" in eight (8) different life arenas, each of which is essential to one's freedom, growth, happiness, success, and inner peace.

These EIGHT (8) life arenas include the following: 

• Constitutional
• Spiritual
• Physical
• Mental
• Emotional
• Social
• Financial
• Moral

Track and Field

Track & field athletes rarely participate in more than one, two, or three different events at any given competition. The decathlon is an exception to this rule because decathletes participate in not one, two, or three events, but TEN (10)! A decathlon is considered the supreme athletic event in all of track & field, and it is by far the most challenging and grueling.

Most track athletes specialize in ONE of the five (5) areas of competition:

• Sprinting — 100m, 200m, 400m, 4x100 relay, 4x400 relay
• Running — middle distance (800m, 1500m, mile, 3000m, 5000m) and long distance (10,000m, Half Marathon, Marathon, etc.)
• Jumping — long jump, high jump
• Throwing — discus, hammer throw, javelin, shot put
• Vaulting — pole vault

Decathletes, on the other hand, participate in at least one event from all of these categories. In other words, they do it ALL!

Athletes vs. Decathletes

There are many things that separate a decathlete from a regular track & field athlete. The most obvious difference is that most track & field athletes specialize in ONE area of the sport and usually only compete in one, two, or three similar events at the most. This is especially true at the elite level, where the competition is simply too good for someone to be world class in more than one area of emphasis. This means that jumpers focus on leaping and vaulting, runners focus on endurance racing, sprinters focus on dashing, and throwers focus on hurling, etc. The only common exception to this rule is that elite sprinters will sometimes add the long jump and/or a relay race to their dashing events. 

This specialization is visually evident in the physique of track & field athletes. For example, it's rare to find an elite long-distance runner measuring in at over six feet or in excess of 150 pounds. To wit: the fastest marathoner in history, Kenya's Eliud Kipchoge—who is the only human being to ever break the two-hour barrier in the event—measures in at an extremely slight, almost jockey-esque 5-foot, 5-inches and 123 pounds. On the other hand, it is similarly unheard of to come across an elite shot putter under six feet tall and 250 pounds. To wit: the current world record holder in the shot put, Ryan Crouser of the United States, stands at a towering 6-foot, 7-inches and a whopping 320 pounds!

Let's look at another example.

Big, lean, rippling muscles can be quite helpful in the sprints, but you'll never see a bodybuilder toe the line for a 5,000 or 10,000 meter run. Consider, for instance, the legendary sprinter from Jamaica: Usain Bolt—the current world record holder in both the 100 meter (9.58 seconds) and 200 meter dash (19.19 seconds). Bolt is 6-foot, 5-inches and weighs 207 pounds. Compare that to Alistair Brownlee—a two-time Olympic Gold Medalist endurance triathlete from Great Britain, who measures in at only 6-foot, 0-inches and 154 pounds. 

Another difference between regular track & field athletes and decathletes is that an elite decathlete almost never performs at the level of an elite athlete in an individual event. This means that even the best decathletes in history cannot dash, jump, run, throw, or vault at the level of elite specialists in a given event.

While elite decathletes may come impressively close to specialists in some of their events, they rarely, if ever, break into the elite level in any one event. Their greatness doesn't stem from being the best in any single event, but from being very good at a compendium of 10 different events. In the words of Dan O'Brien, a former Olympic Champion (1996) and World Record Holder in the decathlon: the decathlon includes ten separate events and they all matter. You can't just work on one of them.

"The decathlon includes ten separate events and they all matter.

You can't just work on one of them."

—Dan O'Brien

This singular brand of eclectic excellence garners decathletes a special brand of approbation from the sporting world, including the title of: Greatest Athlete in the World, which is awarded to the winner of any World Championship decathlon competition. Kevin Mayer of France is the current world record holder in the decathlon with 9,126 points. This represents a monumental achievement in the combined event, yet none of Mayer's best marks in any individual event would have qualified him to compete in a world class final in that event. 

Mayer is an extremely balanced athlete—not the world's best in any one event—but the world's very best in all ten of them together. It's a unique, rare, and special ability, one to which the Greatest Athlete in the World title is appropriately awarded. 

Another difference between typical track & field athletes and decathletes is that decathletes spend a LOT more time training than their specialist counterparts. Instead of 15-20 hours of training a week, decathletes will spend upwards of 40-50 hours per week. This is partly because they must practice so many different skills. It is also because they must put even more time into weight training, endurance conditioning, and other cross-fit base-line exercises.

Specialist training is simpler than decathlete training. For example: throwers will spend much of their time doing strength exercises (i.e. weightlifting) and practicing their technique. Sprinters will also spend a lot of time in the weight room in addition to a variety of speed and strength drills on the track. Distance runners will do a little bit of strength work, albeit with lower weight and higher repetitions; they will then pile on the miles for base training and supplement it with speed, interval, hill, CrossFit, and other exercises on the road, trail, and track. Jumpers and vaulters, like throwers, will combine strength and speed work with honing their vaulting or leaping techniques. 

Decathletes must complete a comprehensive combination of all of the above. While most professional athletes consider their sport a full-time job, only decathletes routinely put in 8-plus hour workdays engaged in actual training exercises with less time off than any other track & field athletes. In summary, decathletes work harder and longer (by far) than any other track & field athletes.

Existential Intelligence

So, what does the decathlon have to do with Self-Action Leadership? This question can be answered by introducing a concept known as Existential Intelligence, or just XI for short.

To begin with, it is important to recognize that there are a lot of different ways to be smart.

A person's academic ability, often referred to as one's intellectual quotient—or IQ—has traditionally received the most honor and prestige throughout society. In recent decades, however, other forms of intelligence have gained greater academic and cultural attention and credibility. Some of these other intelligences include: emotional intelligence [EQ], social intelligence [SQ], spiritual intelligence, artistic intelligence, spatial intelligence, physical/athletic intelligence, etc. 

Many consider these additional arenas of intelligence to be as important, and in some cases even more so, than the traditional academic domain. It can be difficult to rank the importance of different kinds of intelligence because one intelligence will typically possess more utility and value in a given field than another. At Freedom Focused, we consider all of them to be important, and affirm that self-action leaders should strive for a balanced proficiency across a spectrum of different domains. While one or more arenas may be emphasized over others in a career, hobby, or other pursuit, all major areas of existential development should be afforded balanced attention and effort throughout life itself.   

Many different forms of intelligence are involved in the effective execution of Self-Action Leadership. Moreover, the study and practice of SAL over time engenders its own, unique and hybrid form of intelligence, the substance of which is a holistic by-produce of the synergistic amalgamation of eight key arenas of intelligence. Freedom Focused employs the term, Existential Intelligence, to describe this holistic brand of comprehensive life intelligence, which SAL empowers you to develop. This comprehensive form of balanced intelligence constitutes being smart across a general spectrum of your own humanity and life.

Specifically, Existential Intelligence incorporates EIGHT (8) different arenas of life leadership, including the: constitutional, spiritual, physical, mental, emotional, social, financial, and moral domains of life. At Freedom Focused, we refer to these areas as: The Eight Life Arenas of Self-Action Leadership and define Existential Intelligence as: holistic knowledge wisely and harmoniously applied across the eight life arenas of Self-Action Leadership.

EXISTENTIAL  INTELLIGENCE

Holistic knowledge wisely and harmoniously applied

across the eight life arenas of Self-Action Leadership.

EIGHT  (8)  LIFE  ARENAS  OF  SELF-ACTION  LEADERSHIP

Constitutional, Spiritual, Physical, Mental, Emotional, Social, Financial, and Moral domains of life.

Having introduced the concept of Existential Intelligence, let's now delve into the details of each domain included in Eight (8) Life Arenas of Self-Action Leadership.

Constitutional Arena

The constitutional arena involves the study and work you do as a self-action leader to consciously design, direct, and plan your life's vision, mission, values, goals, standards, social circle, etc. It involves drawing up a comprehensive PERSONAL CONSTITUTION or set of existential blueprints for your life and career. 

The Good Book teaches that "where there is no vision, the people perish." (4) The Constitutional Arena is the area of life where a self-action leader cultivates, organizes, and articulates a VISION of one's future. It serves as a foundation upon which the other seven (7) life arenas of SAL are built.    

Later on, when the SAL model is introduced in BOOK the FIFTH, I will walk you step-by-step through the process of designing and composing your own comprehensive Declaration of Independence and Self-Constitution. This values-identifying, vision and mission-establishing, standard-setting, and goal-producing project will serve as the most singular and significant homework assignment you will complete as part of your study of this Life Leadership textbook and your pursuit of the SAL Master Challenge.  

Constitutional intelligence is defined as: the ability to identify, clarify, articulate, and successfully pursue your life's vision, mission, values, standards, sociality, etc.

CONSTITUTIONAL  INTELLIGENCE

The ability to identify, clarify, articulate, and then successfully pursue

your life's vision, mission, values, standards, sociality, etc. 

Spiritual Arena

We are not physical beings having a spiritual experience.

We are spiritual beings having a physical experience"

—Pierre Teilhard de Chardin

Spirituality and/or spiritual intelligence are defined in various ways by different scholars and organizations. One author and expert in the academic field of Spiritual Intelligence (yes, spirituality is an academic subject) by the name of Cindy Wigglesworth, defines spirituality as: "the innate human need to be connected to something larger than ourselves, something we consider to be divine or of exceptional nobility." (5)

Two other experts in the scholarly field of Spiritual Intelligence (Zohar and Marshall) suggest that as human beings: 

"We are driven, indeed we are defined, by a specifically human longing to find meaning and value in what we do and experience. We have a longing to see our lives in some larger, meaning-giving context ... We have a longing for something towards which we can aspire, for something that takes us beyond ourselves and the present moment, for something that gives us and our actions a sense of worth." (6)

The spiritual arena of life and work involves the effort you expend as a self-action leader to tune-in to internal, visceral sentience and communications that are spiritually felt, experienced, and discerned rather than physically heard, mentally processed, or intellectually interpreted. For some, one's spiritual life may be closely associated with one's religious beliefs; for others, it may not. Religion and spirituality are not always mutually inclusive. Even agnostics and atheists will sometimes admit to receiving direction, guidance, insight, and wisdom via an internal and viscerally intuited "Sixth Sense." 

Most (if not all) human beings have experienced this phenomenon, although we employ a hundred different names to describe it (e.g. God, the universe, nature, intuition, gut feeling, spider senses, inner compass, instincts, sixth sense, metaphysics, etc.)

Freedom Focused defines Spiritual Intelligence as: the desire, willingness, and capacity to detect, interpret, and effectively utilize information and wisdom that is metaphysically accessed or viscerally received.

SPIRITUAL  INTELLIGENCE

The desire, willingness, and capacity to detect, interpret, and effectively utilize information

and wisdom that is metaphysically accessed and/or viscerally received. 

Physical Arena

The physical arena consists of learning to properly care for your physical body. It involves fitness, nutrition, rest, relaxation, prevention, preparation, balance, and anything else involved in obtaining and then maintaining physical health, well-being, and mortal vigor and longevity. It also involves kinesthetic coordination and dexterity (i.e. athleticism). Thus, athletes typically exhibit high levels of physical intelligence.  

Freedom Focused defines physical intelligence as: acquiring and then acting on knowledge that leads to a fit, nourished, balanced, and otherwise healthy and mobile physical existence.

PHYSICAL  INTELLIGENCE

Acquiring and then acting on knowledge that leads to a fit, nourished,

balanced, and otherwise healthy and mobile physical existence. 

"Give me health and a day, and I will make

the pomp of emperors look ridiculous."

—Ralph Waldo Emerson

Mental Arena

The mental arena involves nurturing your mind and intellect through reading, studying, observing, asking questions, and most importantly, doing. People with high levels of mental intelligence value education (both formal and informal). They recognize that learning processes should not end at the completion of one's formal education. They continually hunger and thirst after new insights, knowledge, and wisdom about life, other people, and the world and universe around them. More importantly, they are courageous in wisely applying what they learn to real life situations and circumstances.  

Mental intelligence also involves the ability to effectively gauge your personal mental health. Those who are mentally intelligent possess the capacity, humility, and courage to seek out help from others when their mental hygiene is suffering beyond their own ability to address. 

Freedom Focused defines Mental Intelligence as: the desire, willingness, and capacity to continually nurture one's mind and intellect in an upward spiral of acquired knowledge and applied wisdom. It is also the ability to gauge one's own mental health and hygiene and the humility and courage to seek out help when one's mental health needs addressing. 

MENTAL  INTELLIGENCE

The desire, willingness, and capacity to continually nurture one's mind and intellect in an upward spiral

of acquired knowledge and applied wisdom. It is also the ability to gauge one's own mental health and hygiene and the humility and courage to seek out help when one's mental health needs addressing. 

As a start to your pursuit of mental intelligence and hygiene, Freedom Focused recommends Dale Carnegie's famous book, How to Stop Worrying and Start Living. From there, we further invite you to drink deeply from the wells of wisdom located in the SAL Library (see Appendix A for a complete list of titles).  

Emotional Arena

The emotional arena involves the myriad emotional states you have experienced in the past, are experiencing in the present, or will experience in the future.

Effectively managing your own emotions can
be one of life's greatest challenges.

Much has been written on the subject of emotional intelligence, or EQ. While a detailed treatment of the subject is beyond the scope of this text, we heartily encourage you to study the topic in greater detail, beginning with Daniel Goleman's landmark book on the subject. (7)

In defining Emotional Intelligence, Goleman cites the work of Howard Gardner and Peter Salovey in boiling "EQ" down to "five main domans." Including in these domains are: comprehending and effectively managing one's own emotions, successfully handling relationships by doing the same for others, and motivating oneself. (8) 

Freedom Focused borrows from these domains in the creation of our own definition, as follows: bridling and otherwise managing your own emotions while positively influencing others to do the same.

EMOTIONAL  INTELLIGENCE

Bridling and otherwise managing your own emotions while positively influencing others to do the same. 

"As more and more artificial intelligence is entering into the world,

more and more emotional intelligence must enter into leadership."

—Amit Ray

Social Arena

The social arena involves interpersonal relationships of all kinds. From couples, families, and neighborhoods, to teams, organizations, and nations, all kinds of human relations require social intelligence to thrive in the long run.

Listening is an especially important element of social intelligence.

Social intelligence requires a deep understanding of human nature, both individually and collectively speaking. Good people skills are not always easily developed, but they are worth their weight in gold in both personal and professional settings to those willing to pay the price to acquire them. 

Freedom Focused defines social intelligence as: the ability to navigate a variety of human relationships and social dynamics by effectively reading, understanding, empathizing and communicating with, and being tolerant toward a wide spectrum of people and groups. 

SOCIAL  INTELLIGENCE

The ability to navigate a variety of human relationships and social dynamics

by effectively reading, understanding, empathizing and communicating with,

and being tolerant toward a wide spectrum of people and groups. 

Social intelligence is all about the importance of relationships and the role that selflessness plays in nurturing quality relationships. It starts by recognizing that the world does not revolve around YOU. In the words of Daniel Goleman:

"Self-absorption in all its forms kills empathy ... [and] compassion. When we focus [too much] on ourselves, our world contracts as our problems and preoccupations loom large. But when we focus on others, our world expands. Our own problems drift to the periphery of the mind and so seem smaller, and we increase our capacity for connection — or compassionate action." (9)

If you have not already read Dale Carnegie's famous book, How to Win Friends and Influence People, Freedom Focused earnestly recommends this human relations' classic as an excellent place to start your study of social intelligence. You can then follow that up by reading Daniel Goleman's Social Intelligence: The New Science of Human Relationships. 

Financial Arena

The financial arena incorporates an individual's capacity to earn, budget, save, and invest money. Like it or not, money is an incredibly important variable in the life of anyone who lives in this world. In the pithy parlance of Zig Ziglar: money isn't everything, but it ranks right up there with oxygen. 

Zig is right.

In today's uber-modern global society, money is not just about freedom, power, and influence; it is absolutely essential for basic survival. While self-action leaders don't value riches in and of themselves, they do recognize the practical necessity and utility of money in a mortal realm, as well as its facilitation of personal and professional growth and progress. As such, effective self-action leaders make financial stability and security a high priority in their lives and careers.  

Freedom Focused defines financial intelligence as: the ability to earn, budget, save, and invest money for purposes of personal stability, security, independence, freedom, influence, power, and philanthropy.

FINANCIAL  INTELLIGENCE

The ability to earn, budget, save, and invest money for purposes of personal

stability, security, independence, freedom, influence, power, and philanthropy. 

No matter what your current financial situation may be, there is tremendous fiscal hope for all diligent, focused, and dedicated self-action leaders. I say this confidently as one who personally faced great financial difficulty and duress for the first decade of my adult life—experiences I will relate in greater detail in BOOK the SIXTH.

As you animate SAL principles and practices in your own life, your commitment to living discreetly and wisely can empower you to solve your own financial conundrums just as surely as you can solve dilemmas and puzzles in any other arenas of your life and career. In the comforting words of popular financial guru, Dave Ramsey: I believe that through knowledge and discipline, financial peace is possible for all of us.  

"I believe that through knowledge and discipline, financial peace is possible for all of us."

—Dave Ramsey

Freedom Focused agrees with Dave!

Moral Arena

The moral arena involves cultivating an active and sensitive conscience that readily recognizes the difference between right & wrong and good & evil. Intelligence in this domain then leads a self-action leader to consistently choose right over wrong and good over evil in the face of practical realities and daily dilemmas that arise in real life—even (and especially) when it is personally inconvenient to do so. High moral intelligence empowers a self-action leader with the power to discern goodness and rightness amidst the myriad complexities and seeming "gray areas" of real life and relationships. 

At Freedom Focused, we believe that all human beings are born with a conscience, or as Immanuel Kant put it: a "moral law within." This innate conscience and the level of your moral intelligence throughout your life will depend on the extent to which you cultivate, nurture, and educate this inner moral sense.

"Two things fill the mind with ever-increasing wonder and awe,

the more often and the more intensely the mind of thought is drawn to them:

the starry heavens above me and the moral law within me."

—Immanuel Kant

Freedom Focused defines moral intelligence as: possessing a knowledge of right and wrong, a sharpened conscience that readily discerns between good and evil, and the courage to act in accordance with principles of goodness, rightness, and truth.  

MORAL  INTELLIGENCE

Possessing a knowledge of right and wrong, a sharpened conscience that

readily discerns between good and evil, and the courage to act consistently

in accordance with principles of goodness, rightness, and truth. 

Existential Intelligence = Existential Balance

Every person who was, is, or ever will be born into this world possesses varying degrees of innate ability and talent in each of these eight arenas of human endeavor and SAL. Likewise, we are all born lacking to varying degrees in these same eight areas. Whatever knowledge, skills, or talents individuals lack must be intentionally pursued and consciously cultivated if they are to be obtained, developed, and eventually owned. It is ultimately up to each individual person to determine the extent of one's own Existential Intelligence.  

Freedom Focused makes no attempt to rank the importance of these eight different domains of intelligence. Rather, we hold that an effective balance of all eight domains is the ultimate goal. Such a balance becomes the essence of a high level of Existential Intelligence.

As human beings, we typically view our lives through a variety of isolated compartments and lenses (e.g. personal, professional, spiritual, physical, mental, emotional, social, sexual, financial, moral, etc.). We utilize the term "Existential" to conceptualize the whole of your life's existence, as represented by the eight life arenas of SAL. 

The EIGHT (8) Life Arenas of Self-Action Leadership

A common error made by many people is to assume that a person who is intelligent in one area (e.g. academic genius) would naturally possess Existential Intelligence as well.

This is not necessarily the case!

In truth and in fact, some of the most existentially foolish people in the world are geniuses in a given sub-intelligence. This is one reason why our world has endured so many self-inflicted tragedies such as: the financial duress and familial rot of elite athletes and entertainers, the ruined reputations and incarcerations of dishonest and unethical business tycoons, and the squandered opportunities or even premature deaths of talented artists and musicians snared in the tangled web of substance abuse.

No matter how smart you may be in one life arena, you will remain an existential infant if you neglect the other arenas. In extreme cases, this oversight may cost you your health, happiness, financial stability, relationships, or even your life!

Applicable here are the wise words of Mohandas Gandhi, who once said: [YOU] cannot do right in one department of life whilst ... occupied in doing wrong in any other department. Life is one indivisible whole." (10)

"You cannot do right in one department of life whilst occupied in

doing wrong in any other department. Life is one indivisible whole."

—Mohandas Gandhi

While self-improvement may occur in one arena at a time, systems thinking teaches that every thought, word, and deed influences (for good or ill) every other area of your life, and therefore your life as a whole. This means a positive impact or imprint in one arena produces a correlating influence upon all other arenas, thus positively influencing the entirety of your life's existence—and vice versa in the case of a negative impact or imprint. Likewise, imbalances of either excess or deficiency will similarly influence one's holistic existential balance and/or intelligence.  

Self-action leaders aim for growth across the full spectrum of their humanity (all 8 life arenas). Such balance enhances and advances their very being and existence, making them whole through a SAL-imbued "Golden Mean." (11)

Many people are masters at one area of their lives, yet slaves to other parts. For example, think of someone you know who is athletic, fit, and physically attractive, yet spiritually or morally bankrupt and always mired in disastrous relationships. On the other hand, have you ever met a good, kind, spiritual person with healthy relationships, but who suffers from preventable physical health problems.

Do you, by chance, know someone who is incredibly successful professionally and financially, but who lost his or her virtue, integrity, and family on their way to the "Top"? Or perhaps you have known someone who is so overly devoted to their family and church that they can't pay their own bills?

You probably know people who are incredibly talented, capable, and effective in one, two, or three of the eight (8) arenas, yet never attain the happiness, joy, and inner peace that is available only to those who are more balanced—a reward which can only come from investing an equitable expenditure of time and effort across the full spectrum of life arenas. To become a master of one area of your life at the expense of the others defeats the ultimate purposes of SAL.

At this point, perhaps you are feeling a little guilty about—or even overwhelmed by—your own life imbalances. 

Don't fret!

        YOU are not alone. 

Despite being the author of this concept and studying its particulars in great detail for nearly four decades, I openly confess that I remain guilty of many life imbalances myself! 

Indeed, I struggle right along with everyone else when it comes to my own daily application of SAL in its proper balance. It's not an easy pathway to tread; but it is a worthwhile journey to pursue, especially when you continually remind yourself that the goal is not PERFECTION—the goal is steady growth over long periods of time through the pursuit of ideals in the form of SAL principles and practices.

Knowing that I will continue to struggle with my own SAL to varying degrees for the rest of my life removes a great deal of pressure by perpetually posturing SAL as a positive and productive doctrine as opposed to a discouraging or defeating dogma.

Yes... I will continue to struggle no matter how long and hard I try.

        And so will you!

But the struggle is worthwhile because the rewards for doing so ultimately outweigh the price required to obtain them.

While holistic human perfection may not be possible in this world, piecemeal progress and perpetual personal polishing is not only possible, but guaranteed as you embrace the life-changing principles and practices championed in this text. None of us will ever reach perfection as mortals; but we can achieve a measure of existential completion and wholeness... one, small step at a time.    

With this hope in mind, I earnestly urge you to avoid beating yourself up over your present flaws, imbalances, and inadequacies. A much more positive and productive approach is to reinvest that same energy into incrementally inching toward tangible improvement—one small step-at-a-time.

Personal change is rarely easy; but it is always possible.

Self-Action Leadership empowers men and women, boys and girls with the knowledge, skills, and inspiration to become masters of their entire lives, not just selective slices of it. The concept of harmonizing the eight (8) core life arenas into increased states of balance is referred to as Existential Balance, which Freedom Focused defines as: a healthy state of equilibrium among the Eight (8) Life Arenas of Self-Action Leadership.

EXISTENTIAL BALANCE

A healthy state of equilibrium among the eight (8) Life Arenas of Self-Action Leadership (SAL).

"Just as a car runs more smoothly and requires less energy to go faster and farther

when the wheels are in perfect alignment, you perform better when your

thoughts, feelings, emotions, goals, and values are in balance."

—Brian Tracy

The goal of Self-Action Leadership is not to become an elite metaphysical "Athlete" in one, two, or even several of these eight (8) life arenas. The objective is to become a proficient—not to be confused with a perfect—metaphysical OCTATHLETE in all eight arenas, and thereby achieve high levels of both Existential Intelligence and Existential Balance. The quest for Existential Growth through Existential Intelligence is made possible by a balanced pursuit of these eight (8) life arenas of SAL. It is yet another way in which morally-informed Self-Action Leadership transcends morally-neutral self-leadership.  

In his book, How Will You Measure Your Life, the late Clayton Christensen—a highly acclaimed innovation expert and former Harvard Business School (HBS) professor—tells of his experience observing the life trajectories of classmates from his own college days as a student at HBS. He explained that at his five-year class reunion, nearly everyone seemed to be doing well, getting rich, and enjoying positive personal relationships. By their tenth reunion, however, things had begun to change, and that "despite [significant] professional accomplishments, ... many of them were clearly unhappy." (12)

He goes on to say: 

"Behind the facade of professional success, there were many who did not enjoy what they were doing for a living. There were, also, numerous stories of divorce or unhappy marriages. I remember one classmate who hadn't talked to his children in years, who was living on the opposite coast from them. Another was on her third marriage since we'd graduated." (13)

Christensen shared further that one of his classmates was the now infamous Jeffrey Skilling, former CEO of Enron—the ignominious energy corporation that swindled employees and investors out of billions in the early 2000s. Surprisingly, Christensen describes "the Jeffrey Skilling I knew of from our years at HBS [as a] good man." According to Christensen, "he was smart, he worked hard, [and] he loved his family." (14). Over time, Skilling obviously lost sight of his moral compass, among other things, and it was sad for Christensen to observe from afar the decline of someone who started out with so much promise. 

Such a scenario, and others similar to them, are extreme examples of what can occur when human beings fail to develop Existential Intelligence and Balance in their lives and careers. It's what happens when you focus all (or most) of your time, effort, and focus on one life arena while neglecting or abandoning the others.

Existential Octathletes

Freedom Focused defines an Existential Octathlete as: a self-action leader who strives for Existential Balance and Intelligence by concurrently focusing on one's development and growth in all eight (8) life arenas of Self-Action Leadership.

EXISTENTIAL OCTATHLETE

A self-action leader who continually strives for Existential Balance and Intelligence by concurrently focusing on one's development and growth in all eight (8) life arenas of Self-Action Leadership.

In order to become a high-functioning self-action leader, you must do more than focus on one or two arenas of life and SAL; you must strive to develop all eight of them together in harmony and equilibrium. In other words, YOU must become a high-performing metaphysical OCTATHLETE. As you do so, you elevate your own Existential Intelligence and Balance to the greatest possible degree. Along the way, you begin to usher into your life the kind and degree of growth, progress, happiness, success, and inner peace that you most seek.

I recognize the ambitious nature of this holistic life objective. As such, I sincerely empathize with anyone who perceives this audacious existential quest to be daunting, if not overwhelming. No one ever said that achieving Existential Balance would be easy; you will certainly never hear me say that! 

No!

        It is not easy. 

But like any other worthwhile objective in life, it is worth the high price you must pay to obtain it. 

Why?

        Because the rewards ultimately outweigh the cost... many times over. 

In track and field, you can choose to compete in whatever event you wish; there is no moral imperative involved in your selection of contests. Real life is different. Whether we know it or not, and whether we like it or not, all human beings are Existential Octathletes. Unfortunately, not everyone is educated in and fully committed to, Existential Balance. This is one reason there is such a wide spectrum of figurative "Performance Scores" among collective humanity. 

At Freedom Focused, we believe that all human beings have a moral imperative (or duty)—for our own good and the welfare of others around us—to cultivate, develop, and continually nurture all eight (8) arenas of life and SAL to the best of our knowledge and ability. We are, of course, free to choose not to do so. In fact, many (if not most)—wittingly or not—fail to do so to a large degree, and the negative consequences that flow from such neglect are predictable and odious.

Existential Octathletes vs. Renaissance Men and Women

 

High-functioning self-action leaders are not necessarily Renaissance men or women with it comes to their specific personal aptitudes and talents. Indeed, many of us—like myself—may have a relatively narrow niche of concrete personal or professional skills. For example, I am an outstanding writer, speaker, leader, and organizer. But ask me to build, fix, install, operate, design, decorate, invent, market, sell, or troubleshoot anything even remotely artistic, mechanical, or technological and you will be sorely disappointed in my service. 

I am not a jack-of-all-trades.

        I am a master of a few trades.

As an executive, there's little point in hiring an artist to serve as a mechanic, or tapping a poet for a tech job. In some (and perhaps many) cases, it may be possible to teach, train, and equip someone with an average aptitude in a given area to eventually provide basic services in an acceptable manner in that field. To do so, however, is usually a poor use of your organization's finite time, energy, and resources. You are better off investing more time in recruiting an ideal candidate well suited to each open position. Thus, when it comes to most job openings, employers aren't looking for a Renaissance man or woman; they're simply seeking out a subject area expert with a specific set of demonstrable knowledge, skills, and talents.

However, employers do want all of their people to be well-balanced human beings who have personal and professional direction and vision (constitutional), are in-tune with their inner selves and outer environment (spiritual), are healthy and fit (physical), cognitively competent and stable (mental), emotionally mature (emotional), socially well adjusted and savvy (social), fiscally discreet, prudent, and wise (financial), and honest, trustworthy, and ethical (moral). Employers will not, of course, always get a workforce so ideally healthy and balanced, but rest assured it's the universally desired ideal.

Being an Existential Octathlete does not mean you must become an expert at a holistic array of work functions. Relatively few people are Renaissance men and women or "Jack-" or "Jill-of-all-trades." It merely means you are striving to develop the capacity to maintain a healthy equilibrium among the Eight (8) Life Arenas of Self-Action Leadership.

Developing Existential Balance is not easy.

        But it is possible!

Most (if not all) people—myself included—struggle throughout their lives to realize this elusive achievement. But you can become increasingly balanced over time through conscious and intentional effort conscientiously and consistently expended.

In Your Journal

• Which of the eight (8) Life Arenas of SAL do you exhibit the most natural strength?

• Which of the eight (8) Life Arenas of SAL do you exhibit the most natural weakness?

• Which of the eight (8) Life Arenas of SAL would you benefit most from focusing and working on?

• What other insights can you glean from the "Existential Octathlete" paradigm that will benefit your life and career moving forward?

—Dr. JJ

Wednesday, April 24, 2024

Palm Beach Gardens, Florida, USA

Author's Note: This is the 385th Blog Post Published by Freedom Focused LLC since November 2013 and the 196th consecutive weekly blog published since August 31, 2020.   

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Chapter 4 Notes:

1.  Loehr, J, & Schwartz, T. (2003). The Power of Full Engagement: Managing Energy, Not Time, is the Key to High Performance and Personal Renewal. Free Press: New York, NY. Page 12.

2.  Ibid. See pages 197-222.

3.  Ibid. Page 13.

4.  Proverbs 29:18 (The Old Testament)

5.  Wigglesworth, C. (2012). SQ21: The Twenty-One Skills of Spiritual Intelligence. New York, NY: SelectBooks, Inc. Page 8.

6.  Zohar, D. & Marshall, I. (2000). SQ: CONNECTING with our SPIRITUAL INTELLIGENCE. New York, NY: Bloomsbury. Page 4.

7.  Goleman, D. (1995). Emotional Intelligence: Why it Can Matter More than IQ. New York, NY: Bantam Books.

8.  Ibid. Page 42-43.

9.  Goleman, D. (2006). Social Intelligence: The New Science of Human Relationships. New York, NY: Arrow Books. Page 54.

10.  Covey, S. R. (2004). The 8th Habit: From Effectiveness to Greatness. New York, NY: Free Press. Page 150.

11.  Aristotle's "Golden Mean" will be formally introduced and explicated in greater detail in a later chapter.  

12. Christensen, C.M., Allworth, J., and Dillon, K. (2012). How Will You Measure Your Life. Harper Business: New York, NY. Page 2.

13.  Ibid.

14.  Ibid. Page 3.

  

What is Self-Action Leadership?

 

Chapter 3

What is Self-Action Leadership 

In BOOK the FIRST, Chapter One, Self-Action Leadership (SAL) was loosely defined as: "taking complete personal responsibility for your thoughts, speech, and actions—and any consequences engendered thereby."

This chapter expands upon this definition by providing additional contour and nuance to the holistic nature of SAL as a comprehensive personal leadership paradigm and toolbox. It further illuminates the potential SAL has to transform your life when properly learned and applied. 

Self-Action Leadership is a new theory of personal leadership development. As the previous chapter discussed, SAL is hewn out of the ore of existing academic and philosophical theories (i.e. self-leadership, action research, existentialism, and autoethnography). 

Dr. JJ at age 7
circa 1987

SAL was constructed over a period of nearly 40 years by virtue of an extended analytic autoethnographic study. I began this study at age seven (7), when I first began journaling and learning about goal setting, values clarification, and other, related personal development principles and practices. From this tender age onward, I have been deeply interested in and fascinated by all of the subjects that have played a role in this comprehensive self-study (i.e. personal development, leadership, literature, history, philosophy, theology and religion, etc.).

Conceptually speaking, Self-Action Leadership (SAL) is substantively analogous to self-leadership (S-L) theory, which was pioneered in the early 1980s by Charles C. Manz. Despite these substance similarities, SAL introduces original theoretical constructs in the form of a theory and a model that are both unique from S-L theory. In addition, SAL invokes a moral imperative that S-L implies, but does not explicitly mandate. 

With this in mind, SAL is defined more specifically as: morally informed self-leadership that is action-oriented, focused on long-term results, and aimed at a continual rise in the Existential Growth of self and others. 

SELF-ACTION LEADERSHIP  (SAL)

Morally informed self-leadership that is action-oriented, focused on long-term results,

and aimed at a continual rise in the Existential Growth of self and others.

Existential Growth will be defined in greater detail later in this book. For now, I invite you to reflect back upon the its basic definition from BOOK the FIRST, Chapter One, which is: the growth, progress, and maturation of one's holistic potential. 

While the ultimate goal of self-leadership may be to succeed, or to win (whatever the cost), the ultimate goal of Self-Action Leadership is to do the right thing at the right time for the right reasons with the understanding that in the end, right makes might, (1) not the other way around. Unlike S-L, SAL explicitly requires that one's actions bring about the best long-term benefits and results for everyone involved in a situation—even if a measure of pain must be suffered in the short run to bring about noble ends. In the words of a former U.S. Congressman and member of the House of Representatives from the State of South Carolina:

"Jesus lost a voice vote to a guy named Barabbus. Martin Luther King, Jr. was assassinated. Dietrich Bonhoffer was put to death. Abraham Lincoln lost more races than he won. How you conduct yourself matters. We [live] in a society, in a culture, that values winning ... [including] cheating to win [and] getting away with committing penalties. ... [That is the wrong approach because] the way we do things matters. ... Winning is [not] the ultimate objective. ... The ultimate objective is to lead an honorable life." (2) 

SAL is designed to assist us in leading honorable lives. As human beings, we are imperfect, and that's okay—as long as we are striving to gradually and steadily improve over time and do our best to avoid hurting other people in the process. Sadly, however, some self-leaders are genuinely evil people who intentionally do bad things and commit terrible atrocities for selfish and self-serving purposes. 

Truth be told, some of the most effective self-leaders throughout history have also been some of the worst human beings on the planet. Adolf Hitler is perhaps the most classic and cliché historical example of this nefarious phenomenon. As an unusually talented, disciplined, and remarkably capable self-leader and influencer of others, the fiendish führer of the Third Reich successfully employed a variety of self-leadership-oriented "cognitive and behavioral strategies" (3) in pursuit of his ambitious and aggressive military and geopolitical objectives.

The problem with Hilter was, of course, that his actions were self-centered, immoral, and ruthlessly violent. The result of this extraordinary, yet utterly evil, self-leadership practice was the bloodiest war and the deadliest genocide in human history. 

Simply stated, SAL provides the moral compass that S-L theory alone lacks. Thus, SAL empowers you to not just permanently succeed, but to benefit others and help them to permanently succeed in the process. Then, when your time in this world is up—a reality we all face eventually—you can leave behind a lasting legacy that will make those who knew you proud. Such a legacy will continue to positively impact whomever you leave behind. 

S-L can help you to do great (or terrible) things.

        SAL, on the other hand, can empower you to become great by doing good. 

Sam Houston
1793-1863

"I have but one maxim:

do right and risk the consequences."

—Sam Houston

Contrasting the Lives of Hitler and Mandela

To better illustrate the difference between morally-neutral self-leadership and morally-informed Self-Action Leadership, it is illustrative to compare and contrast the lives and political careers of Adolf Hitler and Nelson Mandela. Ironically and surprisingly, these two men's dramatically divergent journeys through life actually resembled each other in several significant ways in their earlier years. To wit: both men felt ostracized and marginalized as young men. Both held personal and political grudges for real or perceived injustices inflicted on them by other people and groups. Both were intelligent, capable, and highly driven men who were passionate about their respective countries' potential for greatness. Both worked assiduously and fought bravely and passionately in an effort to bring about national changes. Then, to top it all off, both men were imprisoned for violently fomenting civil unrest. 

The profound moral divergence that ultimately separated these two historical figures lasting legacies began to unfold during the time they spent serving their respective prison sentences. Hitler used his time in jail to let his bitterness fester and ferment, leading him to write a book—Mein Kampf ("My Struggle")—wherein he outlined his philosophy of Aryan racial supremacy, anti-Semitism, and German nationalism, power, expansionism, and global domination.

Mandela, who served a much longer prison sentence than Hitler, allowed his heart to soften during the nearly three decades he spent behind bars. Guided by the principles of self-reliance and personal power championed in William Ernest Henley's classic poem—Invictus, which is a Latin term that means "unconquered," "unsubdued," or "invincible"—Mandela charted a whole new course for his life that he pursued with integrity and nobility for the remainder of his days.

"It matters not how strait the gate,
   How charged with punishments the scroll,
I am the master of my fate;
   I am the captain of my soul." (4)

South African flag painted on a wall

The moral and dispositional transformation Nelson allowed his heart, mind, and soul to undergo in prison prefaced his steadily growing influence and popularity, which led to his election as president of South Africa less than five years after being released from prison. Today, Mandela is credited (in part) with bringing about a formal end to the racist practices of apartheid. 

Make no mistake about it; both Mandela and Hitler were remarkable self-leaders in terms of their overall achievements and influence. However, of the two men, only Mandela qualifies as a self-action leader because of the moral and ethical components involved.

Moreover, because Hitler chose to pursue an evil pathway, his achievements had a relatively short shelf-life; the thousand-year reign he promised lasted only twelve years, half of which proved hellish for many (if not most) of his countrymen, to say nothing of the worldwide fear, pain, death, destruction, and terror experienced by hundreds of millions of others because of the horrendous wrath his malevolent actions unleashed. Along the way, six million Jews and approximately 75 million other soldiers and civilians lost their lives at a financial cost of trillions of dollars. By the time Hitler committed suicide on April 30, 1945, much of Europe and Southeast Asia lay in ruins.

It was the most colossal disaster in human history. 

Despite the relative similarities between Hitler and Mandela's earlier days, the two individuals could not have ended their lives more differently. Hitler died ignominiously in the extreme at age 56 by his own cowardly hand, after which his body was doused with gasoline and ingloriously torched by Joseph Goebbels—his equally nefarious minister of propaganda—who, in turn, joined his own wife in suicide after poisoning their seven children. 

Nations from throughout the British
Commonwealth and the rest of the world paused
to pay their respects to the internationally admired,
renowned, and respected Nelson Mandela.

Mandela, on the other hand, who had become an international hero—even a legend—passed away peacefully of natural causes incident to old age in 2013 at age 95. After his body lay honorably in State for two days, he was given an official State Funeral attended by representatives from nearly a hundred nations, including Prime Ministers David Cameron, Stephen Harper, and Tony Abbot of the United Kingdom, Canada, and Australia, respectively, President Barack Obama of the United States, and former U.S. Presidents George W. Bush and Bill Clinton.  

What markedly divergent legacies Hitler and Mandela left behind for us to observe, study, and reflect upon! This dramatic historical duality underscores in bold colors and stark tones the importance of the moral and ethical components of self-leadership, and therefore the absolute need for self-action leadership.

While self-leadership alone is often hijacked by those who seek to swindle and subjugate, SAL is the domain of those who views are morally monolithic and therefore aimed at thinking, saying, and doing what is right, with the potential long-term consequences of one's thoughts, speech, and actions always in the forefront of their compassionate, empathetic, and tolerant minds and hearts. Thus, self-action leaders seek to ever reverberate that righteous refrain of freedom: 

"Do what is right; let the consequence follow.

Battle for freedom in spirit and might;

And with stout hearts look ye forth till tomorrow.

God will protect you; then do what is right!" (5)

The effective exercise of self-leadership will usually empower external successes in the short-run. But only SAL will ensure long-term successes that are mutually beneficial to both YOU and those that you influence. 

Right and Wrong are Real

Given the essential nature of the moral and ethical components of SAL, it bears defining "Right" and "Wrong" in as objective a sense as is humanly possible. Of all the aims of this comprehensive Life Leadership textbook, this one is the most important of all; for it is the firm foundation upon which all the other aims either rise or fall.

At present, we live in a world where many people adhere to the notion that there really is no real right and wrong or absolute truth. These people believe that each individual is entitled to "their own truth," which, like a flexible acrobat can be conveniently contorted to condone whatever behavior or lifestyle one seeks to pursue—no matter how arbitrary, whimsical, or even nonsensical.

While it is certainly true that each individual has the liberty to believe in this notion of moral relativity, it is just as true that long-term consequences inevitably demonstrate over time that some behaviors and lifestyles are unquestionably more beneficial and prosperous in nature than are others.

That's just the way things are!

Given this objective reality, it bears offering up what my research has uncovered concerning the reality of absolute truth and the accompanying definitions of right and wrong in an objective sense. Simply stated, RIGHT choices result in positive and constructive long-term consequences for self and others, while WRONG choices do the exact opposite, resulting in negative and destructive long-term consequences for self and others.        

RIGHT Choices

Thoughts, speech, and actions that result in positive and

constructive long-term consequences for self and others.

WRONG Choices

Thoughts, speech, and actions that result in negative and

destructive long-term consequences for self and others.

The operative word in these two definitions is "Long-Term." There are many choices that may seem to be right in the moment, but over time prove themselves to be quite wrong. This is especially true when it comes to human appetites, and perhaps sexual behavior in particular. For example, whenever you are sexually titillated or tempted, it may seem sensible enough to go ahead and gratify your natural desires and lusts. In the heat of the moment, doing so might not only feel right, but will usually feel good—at least in a sentient sense. Does this mean it is right to indulge your sexuality whenever and with whomever (or whatever) you feel like?

For a variety of obvious reasons, the answer to this question is clearly "No." 

On the other hand, there are also many choices that may seem wrong in the moment, but over time may prove themselves to be quite right. A classic example of this is the exercise of "tough love." As a parent, teacher, or leader, it might seem wrong (or at the very least, unpleasant) to reprove or otherwise discipline a child, student, or subordinate on the alter of long-term growth and progress when moral wisdom dictates the necessity of such a course. But despite any and all difficulty in making said decisions, they usually prove to be correct in the end. I know this from personal experience. While I never liked being corrected, reproved, or disciplined, I was always grateful later on for those parents, teachers, and leaders who wisely took the path of greater resistance in a sincere effort to help me in the long run.  

Some consequences quickly follow a word or deed. Other consequences take years, decades, a lifetime, or even centuries or millennia to fully flower (or decay) into easily recognizable "Right" (or "Wrong") choices.

This is just ONE reason why it is so important to study HISTORY!

History is full of examples of those who have tried to operate their lives under alternative and erroneous principles and the dangerous practices that accompany them. In virtually every case, any positive results accrued therefrom were either short-lived, fragmentary, or camouflaged in the end.  

So many justify wrong behavior on the promise of obtaining pleasurable and rewarding short-term consequences and preferred temporary arrangements; while so relatively few take the road less traveled and embrace the promise of long-term benefits and blessings!

The bottom line—and the absolute fact of nature and the universe—is that there really is a real and objective "Right" and a real and objective "Wrong." Moreover, I believe that deep down everyone knows it—although not everyone is sufficiently wise, mature, and secure to recognize and acknowledge it.

The truth of this fact was eloquently articulated and made plain by none other than William James nearly a century-and-a-half ago, when he wrote:  

"What interest, zest, or excitement can there be in achieving the right way, unless we are enabled to feel that the wrong way is also a possible and a natural way, — nay, more, a menacing and an imminent way? And what sense can there be in condemning ourselves for taking the wrong way, unless we need have done nothing of the sort, unless the right way was open to us as well? I cannot understand the willingness to act, no matter how we feel, without the belief that acts are really good and bad." (6)

A fundamental difference between human beings and animals is our cranial possession of a prefrontal cortex and our metaphysical capacity to develop a morally and ethically-operative conscience. While we can't scientifically prove the anatomical existence of a conscience, nor can we empirically delineate exactly what a conscience is and how it operates, it is doubtful that any human being ever lived who has not experienced vestiges of its visceral insights, intuition, nudgings, and promptings.

The job of your conscience is to guide you toward RIGHT thoughts, words, and deeds and steer you away from WRONG actions, speech, and musings. 

Jiminy Cricket!

        As unsophisticated as it might sound, it really is that simple!

We can't prove it scientifically; but I'd stake my life on the veracity of this basic truth. At Freedom Focused, we believe all human beings are born with a conscience, which is either sharpened or dulled over time in more-or-less direct proportion to the heed or disregard that YOU and I choose to afford it. We define "conscience" as: a metaphysical light and compass within that viscerally guides, directs, and prompts your mind, heart, and soul to think about, say, and do what is right, good, and constructive, while avoiding what is wrong, evil, and destructive.  

CONSCIENCE

A metaphysical light and compass within that viscerally guides, directs, and prompts your mind, heart, and soul to think about, say, and do what is right, good, and constructive while avoiding what is wrong, evil, and destructive.  

Your conscience is sharpened by thoughts, speech, and acts rooted in honesty, kindness, selflessness, sincerity, and TRUTH. Your conscience is dulled by thoughts, speech, and acts rooted in dishonesty, meanness, selfishness, insincerity, and ERROR. 

How then, are TRUTH and ERROR defined? 

We define truth as: the way things really are, were, and will be—as delineated by the continuous interplay of Universal Laws and natural consequences over time, and error as: Anything that deviates in any way from the TRUTH.  

TRUTH

The way things really were, are, and will be—as delineated by the

continuous interplay of Universal Laws and natural consequences over time.

ERROR

Anything that deviates in any way from the TRUTH.  

Sir Winston Churchill
1874-1965

Perhaps it was our pal, Sir Winston Churchill, who said it best when he once quipped that: the truth is incontrovertible. Malice may attack it and ignorance may deride it; but in the end, there it is!

"The truth is incontrovertible.

Malice may attack it and ignorance may deride it;

But in the end...  there it is."

—Winston Churchill

 

The reality of truth—and the existence of right and wrong—is indeed an incontrovertible fact. It is also an inconvenient reality that is perennially out of style with much of humanity. This is why countless human beings—including all of us to some extent—seek incessantly, albeit fruitlessly, to escape its penetrating presence throughout our culture, society, world, and universe.

You don't have to embrace a specific ideology or vote a certain party line to recognize the existence of physical and metaphysical truisms that transcend politics and philosophy. Nor do you have to belong to a certain religious faith or attend a specific church to accede the existence of a categorical moral dichotomy differentiating right from wrong. What you do have to do is listen to your Conscience, which can serve as an existential guide pointing the way to TRUTH to all who are willing to listen. Then, when you know what is good, right, and true, you can choose to think about, say, and do what is right while eschewing what is wrong to the best of your finite ability and capacity. 

The goal, therefore, is not PERFECTION; perfection is not possible. Instead of perfection, the aim is to exhibit a real intent to pay close attention to whatever your Conscience is commanding you to do and then seek to carry out those commands to the very best of your imperfect ability. And when you fall short, or choose to disregard your Conscience, which we all do to varying degrees, you must be willing to rectify the deleterious consequences of your speech or actions to the best of your ability and then continually strive to improve upon your past performances. 

If you follow this course, your Conscience will become sharper over time and YOU will gradually become a better person as a result. If you abandon this course, your conscience will become progressively duller until it becomes muted, and YOUR moral and ethical capacity will gradually deteriorate as a result.

If right and wrong are real, then good and evil also exist as real forces and polar opposites of each other. If this is true, what exactly are "GOOD" and "EVIL," and how do you define them? 

According to Dr. M. Scott Peck, M.D., evil is a form of mental illness. In fact, he refers to evil as the "ultimate disease." (7) We agree with Peck; however, we believe that evil is more than a mere malaise of the mind that originates ultimately as a malevolent metaphysical manifestation in one's heart and soul.

EVIL drives thoughts, speech, and actions designed to purposely deceive, discourage, debase, damage, or destroy oneself or others. In its darkest shades, evil is akin an existential black hole, where all light (i.e. truth, goodness, kindness, honesty, etc.) is unable to escape.

GOODNESS, on the other hand, is marked by truth, light, transparency, and an accurate conception of oneself, others, and the world and universe beyond. It is further flagged by compassion and consideration, equality, fairness, kindness, and respect.

Good actions are an outgrowth of the Golden Rule—treat others as you would want to be treated—and where appropriate/relevant, the Platinum Rule—treat others as they would want to be treated. (8)

Peck points out further that, "a mark of the [existentially] advanced is their awareness of their own laziness [and other weaknesses]." (9) In other words, the more goodness a person possesses, the more they will be able to recognize and acknowledge their own imperfections and shortcomings. It is a person's goodness that empowers him or her to detect and recognize whatever badness exists inside oneself. For this reason, it is the very best people (those possessing the most goodness and humility) who most clearly comprehend their own fallibility and foibles. They are also the quickest and sincerest in admitting this fact in both private and public. 

Conversely, the more badness a person develops, the less attuned they become to their own badness. It is therefore goodness and its concomitant humility that detects, recognizes, and acknowledge badness in itself. 

That is why people like Hitler rarely see themselves as being evil. 

Badness leads to deception—and particularly self-deception—which leads one to deceive oneself that he or she is good, or at least not too bad, when in reality, they may have developed a lifestyle marked by debasement, deceit, and debauchery. The deeper and more entrenched one's evil, the more one will be blinded to one's own badness. Conversely, the purer one's goodness, the clearer one will be attuned to one's own imperfection. 

Another way to contrast good and evil is to consider the difference between clarity and convolution. According to Peck, evil harbors a perpetual "desire to confuse," or otherwise obscure reality (10). Rightness or goodness, on the other hand, continuously seeks to clarify and illuminate things as they really were in the past, are in the present, and will be in the future. 

Everyone in the world
needs SAL & Serendipity

Every human being that has ever lived on Planet Earth has thought, said, and done things that are wrong. No one is perfect! However, that does not mean that everyone is evil. Making a mistake or screwing up doesn't make you evil; after all, to err is truly human. Folly itself does not equate with evil, nor does it always lead to evil. 

Evil begins to sprout when you follow up folly with intentional aims to deceive, discourage, debase, damage, or destroy yourself or others. (11) Anyone willing to accept responsibility for one's own thoughts, speech, actions, and the consequences engendered thereby can avoid evil, regardless of the errors of one's past.  

SAL is NOT a RELIGION

It bears noting here that the purpose of this Life Leadership textbook is not to declare and proclaim what is right and wrong in every minute particular. Aside from the practical impossibility of such an attempt, we explicitly make no attempt to do so. Declarations and proclamations of moral and ethical rule-based behaviors is the purview of true religion and the integrity of individual minds. As Ralph Waldo Emerson once put it: nothing is at last sacred but the integrity of your own mind. (12)

A young Ralph Waldo Emerson
1803-1882

"Nothing is at last sacred but the integrity of your own mind."

—Ralph Waldo Emerson

This book is not designed to dictate the particulars of every thought, word, or deed you could or should execute throughout your life and career; that is YOUR job! This book merely affirms that a real RIGHT and WRONG does in fact exist. We therefore encourages individuals everywhere to listen to their consciences for their own sakes and the sakes of everyone else whom they might impact or influence. As some colleagues and I wrote in an academic journal article, Dr. JJ and Freedom Focused always intend to:

"Leave precise policy questions to politicians, specific legal questions to lawyers and judges, technical queries concerning ethics and morals to ethicists and philosophers, and detailed "thou shalts" and "thou shalt nots" to prophets, pastors, and pontiffs. Our goal is NOT ... to dictate detailed directives in every arena of choice. Our seminal intention is to teach correct principles—generally speaking—and then encourage (and hopefully inspire) wise self-governance among an extremely diverse audience of individuals and organizations as they move forward to confront the multifarious moral and practical decisions and dilemmas that continually creep into their everyday lives and organizations." (13)

SAL Mantra

Right is right and wrong is wrong and never the twain shall meet.

Simply stated, right choices lead to freedom, growth, happiness, success, and inner peace. They also promote the development of character, capacity, and integrity. 

Wrong choices lead to bondage, moral atrophy, misery, failure, and anxiety. They also promote the decay of character, capacity, and integrity.  

Do you want your personal humanity to flourish or diminish? The choice is yours, but you cannot wish away the existence of right and wrong any more than you could wish away your own existence or the presence of Universal Laws in the world, solar system, or galaxy. Similarly, you cannot circumvent the consequences of your decisions any more than you can wish away the presence and reality of gravity, inertia, or motion. 

When the bells of conscience toll in your life, you owe it to yourself and your fellow human beings to think, speak, and act in ways that will contribute to the long-term well being of all whose lives may be affected by your decisions. In the words of Michael Faraday, that great nineteenth century English scientist: I will simply express my strong belief, that that point of self-education, which consists in teaching the mind to resist its desires and inclinations, until they are proved to be right, is the most important of all, not only in things of natural philosophy, but in every department of daily life.

Michael Faraday
1791-1867

"I will simply express my strong belief, that that point of self-education, which consists in teaching the mind to resist its desires and inclinations, until they are proved to be right, is the most important of all, not only in things of natural philosophy, but in every department of daily life."

—Michael Faraday

A sure way to distinguish between right and wrong choices is to observe the measure of their impact on your Existential Growth over time. Self-action leaders are not merely interested in getting better grades, improving their relationships, or making more money. Self-action leaders seek a comprehensive philosophy and an accompanying toolkit that addresses the full spectrum of human concerns, challenges, problems, and questions. 

Self-action leaders don't just want to get something; they want to become something.

They seek holistic change and comprehensive growth that elevates, transforms, and transmutes their very existence—their very being—into something better and greater than it was before they embraced SAL; and they are willing to pay any price and exert any effort to achieve the difficult and elusive, yet unspeakably magnificent rewards that await.  

In Your Journal

• How have you defined truth in the past?

• Have the ideas in this chapter altered or otherwise influenced your previous conceptions of right, wrong, and truth? If so, how so?

• What past experiences have you had with your conscience?

• What do you believe your conscience is?

• What is something you could do TODAY to sharpen your conscience for the future. 

—Dr. JJ

Wednesday, April 17, 2024

Palm Beach Gardens, Florida, USA

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Chapter 3 Notes:

1.  Lincoln, A. (1860). Cooper Union Address. February 27, 1860.

2.  FoxNews. (2018). Martha MaCallum. The Story with Martha MacCallum. Interview of Trey Gowdy. February 6, 2018.

3.  Neck, C.P. & Houghton, J.D. (2006). Two Decades of Self-Leadership Theory and Research: Past Developments, Present Trends, and Future Possibilities. Journal of Managerial Psychology. Volume 21, Issue 4, p. 270-295. DOI 10.1108/02683940610663097. Page 270.

4.  Invictus by William Ernest Henley. In Cook, R. J. (1958/1997). One Hundred and One Famous Poems: With a Prose Supplement (Revised Edition). Lincolnwood, IL: Contemporary Books. Page 95.

5.  From Hymn #237, “Do What is Right.” Hymns of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints. 1985. Salt Lake City, UT: Deseret Book Company.

6.  From James’ work, The Dilemma of Determinism (1884).

7.  Peck, M.S. (1983). People of the Lie: The Hope for Healing Human Evil. New York, NY: Touchstone. Page 264.

8.  An extension of the Golden Rule, the Platinum Rule is an idea developed by personality expert Tony Alessandra. The Platinum Rule involves “treating others the way they want to be treated.” The Platinum Rule takes into account personality and other individual differences and preferences, which thereby prompt us to treat others in ways that are not only kind and compassionate (Golden Rule), but also considerate of another person’s individual styles and preferences. See Alessandra’s New Edition Relationship Strategies: Using the Platinum Rule to Create Instant Rapport. (Audio CDs). Nightingale Conant. 

9.  Peck, M.S. (1983). People of the Lie: The Hope for Healing Human Evil. New York, NY: Touchstone. Page 264.

10.  Ibid. Page 179. 

11.  See BOOK the FOURTH, Chapter 15 for more information on the Five D’s of the Dark Shadow—Deception, Discouragement, Debasement, Damage, and Destruction.

12.  Ziff, L., Ed. (1985) Ralph Waldo Emerson: Selected Essays. New York, NY: Penguin Classics. A reference to a quote in his essay, Self-Reliance: "Nothing is at last sacred but the integrity of your own mind." Page 178.

13.  Jensen, Beaulieu, and Neck (2018). “The Self-Action Leadership Model: A Qualitative, Nomological Expansion of Self-Leadership Theory Rooted in Action Research.” Journal of Leadership and Management. 11(2018). Pgs. 10-30. ISSN: 2391-6087. Page 23.