Don’t waste time trying to convince cynics; focus instead on improving your life
Let’s face it, there are just some people who, no matter what, you will never be able to convince them that the glass is half full. Half empty is the lens in which these cynics view life.
Cynics are people who believe that only selfishness motivates human actions. They disbelieves in or minimise, selfless acts or some points of view. Often their views are: He only got the job because of his posh background, she only got the job because she was a woman, he/she must have only got in to Harvard because they lowered the entry requirements for minority groups, he only became successful because of his father … blah, blah, blah
While sometimes there may be some truth in some of these views, more often than not, there are some people who will never believe all humans are born equal – they will think they are superior and if anyone from another class, tribe, religion, continent, colour or gender, achieve the same achievements as they did or more, then this other person must have had it easier or done so, with help from others. In other words, they believe the bar must have been lowered for the other person.
The question is, what can one do about it? Answer. Nothing. Your duty is not to waste your energy on such people but to focus instead, on improving yours and your family’s life.
For example, on Friday, 21 August 2015, two female soldiers graduated from the US Army’s gruelling Ranger School – this is an elite army unit where top physical as well as mental strength is required. Now these women not only passed the same tough training programme as their successful male counterparts, they now have to deal with sceptics & cynics who now claim the training was made easier for the women – despite video and other evidence to the contrary. These cynics did not do their basic research because had they done so, they would have found out that:
1. These two women have already served in the kind of jobs that have been part of the de facto integration of women into front-line combat in the USA, in the last decade.
2. One of the females, Captain Kristen Griest, has served as a military police platoon leader. The other, First Lt. Shaye Haver, was a pilot on an Apache attack helicopter in an aviation brigade.
3. Their own male counterparts also voted for these women to pass. This was not the Army forcing affirmative action/positive discrimination. These male army peers know that one day, their lives may depend on these women. They voted for these women to go through because they knew and had seen during their gruelling training, that these women were and are, just as capable as they are. But the fact that many men dropped out of the training and two women succeeded, is something the cynics cannot accept.
Like I said, there are just some people on this planet who can never welcome success by others. So why are they like this? Simple. They do so, to justify their own insecurities. The idea that someone who is often more disadvantaged than they are, can match or even better their skills or brain power is too much for a cynic to bear. He/she has to come up with an excuse – mostly to justify their own stagnation or often, lack of success. Insecurity has many different guises and cynicism is often one.
So, don’t waste energy on such people. Focus instead, on your goals, your targets, on good grades, and on being successful. Leave the cynics to their own demise.
