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In this life, there are a few types of excellence, many of which go hand in hand. Today, I will detail two of them.
These two types of excellence are Personal Excellence and Societal Excellence.
So, I shall give an example, and bear in mind there are some exceptions to this, like everything in this world. Now, the example relates to both forms of excellence, so remain patient and it will all relate eventually.
Cory Corkscrew is a student in grade six. He goes to Holier Than Thou Catholic School, and he wants to write a book. A novel, a masterpiece formed from the depths of his mind, imagination, creativity. His wildest fantasies on paper!
Cory plans his book beyond all else, imagining his great writing, detailing every relation of character, geography, politics, arts history, you name it, in his fantasy world. He has it all planned out, maybe he puts it down on paper. But what happens when he goes to write it? Placing his pen to his paper, he is ready to let his thoughts flow; but nothing comes of it.
Why not?
Why can't Cory do this?
He's been preparing all year, he wants to write his story over summer, and have it published by grade eight!
Why can't it just go Cory's way?!
Because, I'm sorry Cory, and I'm sorry to all his fans, but he is in grade six. I have never met a child in grade six capable of writing a fantasy epic worth half a damn, and I never will. Regardless of whether he is a prodigy, a boy genius, a doctor, anything. Even if he were the son of Batman and Jesus he would not be able to write this story.
He just couldn't, because he is in grade six. Or rather, not because he is in grade six, but because he is only eleven or twelve years old. Actually, not even because he is only eleven or twelve, but because he has only been around that long.
He simply could not do it, because he does not have the experience or learning necessary.
Now, here is what he could do. Cory's choice is to go to McSmartass University, and get an education in English and Literature so that he can write his story proper. Yes, it isn't necessary for him to go to McSmartass to achieve the necessary skills, but this is his goal, and it has been set in stone.
So, Cory goes through middle school, finishes middle school, goes through high school, finishes high school, but wait! Cory needs a... grade 11 biology credit in order to go to McSmartass U for English Studies. Cory does not stray from his path. He backtracks, finishes grade 11 bio, he's in University but wait! Not quite! He's got to pay sixty billion dollars to go to McSmartass. So Cory gets a job at McDonald's, he's working hard, working hard, working hard, he's taught himself in the ways of the yogi, he doesn't need to sleep anymore, working 24/7, he's got his sixty billion dollars, he heads up to University, he's got in, he's working, learning, learning, he knows English real well, he beats Hemingway in an undead literature zombie fistfight, he's finished with McSmartass U, and he's got the knowledge he needs.
His sits down, at the desk he first tried writing his epic, so many years ago, puts his pen to his paper, and the words flow, like a nice bowel movement, like Jenova Chen, like the second half of Abbey Road. So he's succeeded, he's achieved his own excellence, while also achieving the excellence society required of him.
Maybe it isn't school he requires. Maybe he just needs to keep practicing, and maybe he did that. But then, he achieves his goal, and maybe due to his lack of diploma, he doesn't do as well as he could have. And maybe for Cory, this doesn't matter. But, he's gotta keep making money because money is sustainance for most of us. So you've got to keep that in mind, reaching your own personal excellence, while being realistic; in terms of goals, the means to achieve them, and the outcomes of said goals. Because after all, Cory's life goes on, even after he publishes his book.
Now, sometimes people's goal isn't to create art, but maybe to start a family, and be a good husband or a good wife, father or mother. Then, they still have reach that point, complete with back up plans, and education in the subject; formal or informal, and they've really just got to experience it somehow.
Also, people's goals change. Sometimes after they've completed them, sometimes in the middle of the journey, but they should always be going after them, or else, what do they have to live for?And it might not be just one thing. For me, I've got goals to be a good person, I've got goals to create beauty and art, I've got goals to fall in true love, I've even got goals for completely arbitrary things, and maybe I'm not going to complete all of this, but I will try my hardest, and that is what life is. Life isn't a scientific psychological statistical entity,or a monster powered by what super computers at NASA tell us, not is it a grotesque behemoth powered by a drive to reproduce, by violence, by schaudenfreude and thanatos and wrath.
Life is all those things and more. Life is also 6800000000 individuals with beauty, and art, and dreams, and passion, and love. And we've all got imperfections, some more than others, and we might be pushed forward by our negative feelings, and we might be savage without our laws and faith and culture but at least we have those things! And at least we have the capability to do good things, and to believe in one another. And sometimes, the need for Societal Excellence gets in your way. Push forward. Break through. Reach your dreams, and maybe you can help others with you. It is possible, that it is a dog eat dog world. It is possible that in all cases the right thing to do is to give yourself right of way and push the little guy down to reach the top. But, I don't think it is all that simple; I think it requires some thought, and individuality.
There is no such thing as a universal philosophy, so we should all set our own, and try to live by those rules, and I am in no way trying to get a reader here to believe what I believe. I am not saying I am right, because in a world with 6800000000 individuals, there is a lot of possibilities for what the truth is, maybe so many that nothing is completely true.
As a final thought, I would like to say this: My belief in individuality is high, but I also believe in following certain social norms. Being yourself doesn't always mean being obscene. Being yourself means trying to put a part of you in everything you say, or do. It means being honest when you need to be, and living by your own rules; hopefully within the confines of the law. It doesn't mean that you are required to be a revolutionary. In fact, I would advise against that, unless you truly believe something needs to be changed. People every day make half-hearted attempts at defining themselves and making a commentary. The problem is, everybody is a commentary, it doesn't always need to be said. Everybody is a message, and a statement, and you don't always need to be a rebel to be a somebody.
