We like the idea of possibilities, exaggerating our own capacity and live like we’ll live forever. The common colloquial term “you only live once” has been adopted as a commonly known slang in today’s generation, and though we are well aware that none of us will live forever, we perpetually choose to live in the moment and make impulsive decisions for the sake of momentary happiness. Our ego renders a superiority complex, believing that our strengths are above others’ weakness, and then idealise others to compensate for our own shortcomings. We feel an unjustifiable amount of disappointment when they can’t meet our unreasonable expectations, and rather than questioning our judgement, we nitpick and pinpoint flaws which reflect our weaknesses.

        Optimists dwell on positivity, even when the positivity is irrational and goes against any evidence refuting this rationalisation. Idealists dwell on possibility, telling themselves a lie and disregarding every truth contradicting it. Realists dwell on strategy , working around every paradox within the idea. Pessimists dwell on the negative, diminishing any hope that an idea can be executed. Cynics dwell on the harshness of every flaw, critiquing every concept which idealists believe will revolutionise society.

        Perspective plays a large role in how we relate to the volatility of a changing world, and yet once you’ve gotten a firm grasp of reality, you learn to work your way up on the chain of reaching your own potential. You aim high, and even if you fall, you find a different ladder and move in a different direction to achieve a goal. Accounting for variable change makes a difference to how we respond to change and progress, and thus accepting every challenge which comes our way only motivates and strengthens us to excel. Some of us don’t always know what we want; the rest of us are simply never satisfied, simply because our world is buoyantly intensifying.

        Having a firm grasp on reality doesn’t necessarily mean figuring out then and there what we want: it means accepting what was, what is and what can be, and moulding our journey from there. Perhaps it begins from within, perhaps it begins with an external push, catapulting us into moving and growing. Basic development is nothing more than accepting and adapting to change, knowing that we can’t live forever, and believing in what we do. If you can wake up in the morning and know that what you plan to do that day satisfies your desire deep down, then you’re living out the meaning you’ve romanticised; if you can go to sleep at night, knowing that you’ve had an impact – however great – on someone’s life, you’ve satisfied a destiny you may not even believe in. But it’s there, and it’s real.

        We are what we are not by definition, but by the choices we make.

        The key to success, is to love what you do, and ultimately love yourself for doing it.

~Mikaela Gordan~

“One has never said better how much “humanism”, “normality”, “quality of life” were nothing but the vicissitudes of profitability.” ~Jean Baudrillard~