Set forth below is the text of a comment that I recently posted to the discussion thread for another blog entry at this site:
“If I learned that someone had left a flaming bag of dog crap outside of someone’s front door, I would wonder what was going on. That’s unusual behavior. Someone would have to have a reason to do something like that.”
When there is a flaming bag of dog crap on your doorstep, the meaning is obvious. When you have been banned from the boards repeatedly, the meaning is obvious. If people keep leaving flaming bags of dog crap at your doorstep for 17 years, the sensible person would come to the conclusion that they have been doing something wrong.
I obviously see it differently, Anonymous. My take is that, if you find yourself continually leaving flaming bags of dog crap at doorsteps, you need to ask yourself what is driving you to do that. I don’t like being on the receiving end of flaming piles of dog crap. But I think that I would like being on the delivering side of flaming piles of dog crap even less.
My sincere take.
Rob
Do you know what self awareness means? I didn’t think so.
It is my assessment that we all struggle with that one, Anonymous.
The trouble is that we all see the lack of self-awareness in others but not in ourselves.
I think that the answer is to make a sincere effort to hear the other guy out. If one time in one-hundred, the other guy is onto something, the benefits that you see from listening that one time pay for the 99 times where the other guy really was off his rocker, just as you suspected.
My take.
Rob
“The trouble is that we all see the lack of self-awareness in others but not in ourselves.”
All? Many of us are aware we were heading in the wrong direction and then made changes.
I don’t think that there has ever been anyone who walked the earth who was immediately aware every time that he was headed in the wrong direction that that was the case. That’s why it’s a great gift when someone has the courage to tell you when he thinks that you are headed in the wrong direction. That puts the thought in your head that can prompt you to reevaluate. It can turn out to be a great blessing. It can turn out to be a life-saver.
Again, my take.
Rob