Looking At Cynics In The Face
In Ancient Hellenistic culture, cynics (Greek: Κυνικοί, Latin: Cynici) were students and observers of the ancient school of Cynicism. These philosophers advocated living the simple life based on Virtue and consistent with Nature (Wikipedia). The modern sense attributed with the word came in 1596 when it was used to mean "faultfinder" (Dictionary.com). And in life, we face many cynics who look down at everything we do because it was not done by them. Today, I came face-to-face such a "philosopher" who took the opportunity to shoot a remark on the writing business I started.
As usual, I was working on my other blog while browsing on the Internet. On the table were books on writing. Although harmless, the Cynic said "Yes, you better start to… *looks for the book* make $100,000". I’m used to such patronizing behavior. The logic was: because I am 21 years old - unlike the thirty something Cynic - it was nothing more than a day dream. He’s not the only Cynic I face; there are more. They come in all sorts of sizes, shapes and age.
If I’m used to it, why do I write about it here? This experience and the like should serve as a lesson to entrepreneurs and businesspersons especially. These people are around us and they should not be given too much thought. They are oblivious to our character, experience, knowledge and abilities. Their logic is that because they have never tried it before, it wont work. And if we do fail, they will be more than happy to be the first to say "I told you so".
Another modern cynic are those who like to compare achievements of others with their own. Regardless of how that others do, it can only be done by their own.
How you may feel towards them, you must not blame them. This is called a superiority complex. These individuals try to project their own insecurity onto others around them. They see themselves better than others. Ironically, the root of this subconscious neurotic mechanism is the person’s own inferiority.
So next time you face a cynic, give it some thought where it is logical but not to the point it stops everything positive.
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