Motivational posters may be filled with flowery fluff and cheesy slogans, and they have become a meme in their own right. Every office has at least one.
When I started work at the company I have loyally served since 2006, I marveled and chuckled at a few of these posters, which still adorn our walls despite a merger and a move.
Such endeavors seldom spur real growth. For real achievement to take place, a dream and a desire need to precede it. We have all worked for the things we have and take pride in some achievements more than others. Truly, a person’s accomplishments are a testament to perseverance, faith, and optimism as much as they are a part of his or her very being.
Whenever we seek out to accomplish some dream, the road is littered with the carcasses of failure. Author C.S. Lewis wrote that, “Failures, repeated failures, are finger posts on the road to achievement. One fails toward success.”
Successful people often tout their failures as further motivation to succeed.
By our own nature, we enjoy being lauded for some of our most notable accomplishments. True success comes through effort to promotion and recognition. Success is not a destination, but a constant journey.
This week, I have been dismayed at personal attacks against a particular woman for simply using the title she’d worked so many years to achieve. Petty attacks like this cheapen our national dialogue and fail to advance any discussion on reasonable solutions. One can fiercely disagree with a person’s opinions, but attempting to tear down that person’s most cherished achievement is a stark admission that the attacker has nothing good to add to the discussion, at best rendering his or her viewpoint moot.
I’m confident that you can identify the people to whom I’m referring if you pay attention to the news. I didn’t wish to name them personally because I feel that violates the message I wish to share. It is something to think about.
No one ever achieves personal goals alone. In my most recent novel, a main character opines that there is “no such thing as a self-made billionaire.”
Every successful person invariably leans on the accomplishments and lessons from others as stepping stones on the journey. As former Congressman Paul Ryan put it, “Every successful individual knows that his or her achievement depends on a community of persons working together.”
Acclaimed Civil Rights activist Cesar Chavez put a different spin on it when he noted, “We cannot seek achievement for ourselves and forget about progress and prosperity for our community… Our ambitions must be broad enough to include the aspirations and needs of others, for their sakes and our own.”
Our world has titles for a reason. Imagine perusing the various tomes at your local bookstore and seeing nothing but pictures, and no book bears a title to describe the story within or set it apart from its numerous competitors.
Relating to personal achievement, accomplished people deserve to be credited with working and studying hard. Medical doctors study for many years to achieve the title of Doctor, as do PhDs and even doctors of education. Congresspeople and presidents are elected to hold office and to represent the people. Colonels, Lieutenants, and Sergeants, are ranks meant to establish a clear chain of command in the military. These are all titles said person has achieved through dedication and hard work. Calling them by their preferred titles is a simple gesture of respect for that person’s personal growth. It is not our place to belittle these accomplishments.
Logically, there should be a cutoff somewhere as to what most would consider accomplishment. Otherwise, we’d have armies of Joe Schmo, GED claiming educational equality with Annie H. Knox, PhD (fictitious name… bonus points if you catch the movie reference).
Whether as descriptive words about a novel or newspaper article, or as affirmations of respect, titles lend our world clarity, especially as faith in truth erodes into nothing more than militant opinion.
Personal growth is a series of rewarding accomplishments and failures that define us as people. It takes work and sacrifice to achieve. In the coming year, I hope each of us takes it upon ourselves to make the sacrifices necessary for us to advance as a civilization. Don’t make it a New Year’s resolution if you are not willing to do your part for us to overcome what ails us in 2021. Accomplished people have made great progress towards curtailing the COVID-19 pandemic. Let next year be the time where we can link arms and join them without giving in to divisive bickering and partisan propaganda.
As an aside, I would like to take this moment to wish each of you a Happy Holidays, whether you celebrate Christmas, Chanukah, or any of the litany of other holidays clustered around this time of year. Thanks again for your readership, and let’s reach for the stars in 2021!