The problem with a 'fair fight'

I have learnt that if you have trouble discovering an innate advantage—or if what you find doesn’t seem advantageous enough—you need to create an advantage. 

Not everybody has the advantage of size, good looks, or remarkable demeanors, but rather they have advantages they use to help them be successful. These advantages are often not innate but things a lot of people might have. To be a top performer you need to identify what your advantages are.

Creating an advantage is not always easy...particularly if you have no talent. But never fear it is always possible. 

I think about the people I know, the people I have met and the people I've worked with over the years... most of them unimpressive, untalented, and somehow...eventually in charge.  

And so as I come closer to the end of my degree, I keep in my mind that my time will soon come when I will need to know how to climb the ranks and find my way to the top...and so I question...What does success look like? What are the characteristics of someone who is 'successful'? Is it really all about who you know? Is 'climbing' the ranks really the correct term to use?

And then I remembered a piece of advice that was once given to me...

 You must see business for what it really is: a place where fairness falters, where even the seemingly undeserving win. 

The terms “fair fight” and “level playing field” have little business in the business world. The bottom line in the real business world is that fairness rarely exists.  

A fair fight simply means you are unprepared.

Thing is I could easily lose a fair fight. I was told a fight should be imbalanced in my favor and my opponents minimally skilled and easily defeated.

Let’s be honest, you want a fair fight only if you believe that equality is more important than personal success or if you are bored with how easily you’ve been winning your fights. 

When I first started to hear the advantages of the most successful, it did not seem right that they were successful regardless of talent, skill, or education. But I realised that the people who are willing to overcome everything in their path (aka. a giant lack of talent) because of their desire for their goal were as deserving as anyone else.

Viewing business this way requires a willingness to step away from traditional norms of fairness—to understand that “unfair” fighting does not mean unscrupulous or discreditable. It means thinking critically about some business practice, personality trait, or personal strategy and then methodically employing it to your advantage so you stand out from others and win. 

Some more useless and funny thoughts to ponder...

 

I press harder on a remote control even though I know the reason it's being a pain in the ass is because the batteries are low...

Why do banks charge a fee on "insufficient funds" when the reason in the first place is that there wasn't enough money in the account?

People believe you when you say there are four billion stars, but feel the need to check when you say the paint is wet...

Why doesn't glue stick to the bottle? 

Whose idea was it to put an "S" in the word "lisp"? 

 If people evolved from apes, why are there still apes?

Why do people constantly return to the refrigerator with hopes that something new to eat will appear?

Have you ever run over a string a dozen times with your vacuum cleaner, then reached down, picked it up, examined it, then put it down to give the vacuum one more chance?

How do those dead bugs get into those enclosed light fixtures? 

When we are in the supermarket and someone rams our ankle with a shopping cart then apologizes for doing so, why do we say, "It's all right?" Truth is...its not alright that hurt, you stupid idiot watch where your going!

Why is it that whenever you attempt to catch something that's falling off the table you always manage to knock something else over? 

The statistics on sanity are that one out of every four persons is suffering from some sort of mental illness. Think of your three best friends -- if they're okay, then it's you.

If one synchronized swimmer drowns, do the rest have to as well?

Why is abbreviation such a long word? 

After you've worn your socks once chances are you'll never find them paired up again...

How do you decide which arm rest is yours in a movie theartre?

Do they have the word "dictionary" in the dictionary? 

Why is vanilla ice cream white when vanilla extract is brown?

Why are dogs noses always wet? 

Why do people say "heads up" when you should duck?

Why does a round pizza come in a square box?

Why is it that no matter what color bubble bath you use the bubbles are always white?

What is another word for "thesaurus"?

Why are women and men's shoe sizes different?

Single or Lonely?

A discussion frequently tossed up between friends... Do you prefer being single? Do you prefer being in a relationship? What are the pro's and cons? Are you scared to be alone?

I often hear the words single and lonely go hand in hand. 

What idiot started that train of thought? I have friends who were perfectly content alone until they started dating... then things got complicated, they start saying am I over thinking this? Am I not thinking about it enough?  However I also know people perfectly content in a relationship who couldn't picture their lives any differently.

Here are my thoughts.... 

You cannot be lonely if you like the person you're alone with. 

And whats more, is being in a relationship doesn't cure that loneliness, it merely covers it up and makes you more vulnerable to living a less than extraordinary life. When you are uncomfortable with the person that you are alone with you are always seeking someone outside of you to make you happy. Most will admit it is the easier option, who would have thought liking yourself would be quite a task? 

You should take that time to get to know your self and like your self that way you can be at one, happy and content with life as it is. In a couple-driven consumer marketing society, you’re bound to come across people who wonder why you’re single, as if the ultimate goal in life is to pair up with another human being and cling to that ideal as if your life depends on it. They might even imply that something is “wrong” with you if you’re single. Brace yourself for that kind of ignorance. Remember that you don’t have to defend your being single, just like it’s rude to attack the validity of someone’s relationship.

Being single allows you to stabilize your emotions. When a person is in a relationship, especially when it is just starting, your emotions can go completely out of whack. Your mind can go a mile a minute constantly thinking things like, “Does he/she still like me?”, “Did I say the right thing?”, “What should I do now?”, “When should I call next?” The list goes on and on. It’s enough to make a person go bonkers with all these thoughts running rampant.

The only single people who claim to be lonely are those who choose to be lonely. 

One of the reasons why singleness seems so scary is because of the term itself:  Single. To call yourself lonely when all you lack is one person in your life is irrational. Take a deep breath the world is not over,  you still have friends and you still have family. Take this time and spend it with them. Boyfriends and girlfriends will come and go... friends and family are forever. 

Apparently I should have life figured out

I swear, yesterday I was six years old. Now suddenly I'm 20 and I'm graduating from university in 6 months. Uh...what?  I don't know how this happened.

Preparing to graduate from University is even worse than graduating from high school. When you're a senior in high school, you constantly get bombarded with "So where are you going to Uni?" or "What are you planning to study?" When you're close to graduating at Uni it becomes "So what are you going to do in the real world?" and "Got any jobs lined up?" and maybe even "So what are you doing with your life?" Four years of University means I have an answer to these questions?

My response...A blank yet awkward face that reads.... I don't bloody know!

What's wrong with just living in the now and worrying about the future later? Does that make me irresponsible?

When I attempt to answer the question I end up throwing out random possibilities and try to sell the "So many choices and still so young" line... And I always get the same reaction (This girl has got no clue!).

This really is a strange feeling, I feel like I've been in Uni forever, yet when I look at how close it is to finishing it feels like yesterday I walked into the lecture theater on O-week with 300 plus new students.

I've asked class mates what their plans are when they finish and it disturbs me somewhat that they all seemed to have it planned out. I guess you could say I'm a little jealous. I've always been one to set goals, yet somewhere along the way I lost sight of my career goals.

I feel that University has held me back from doing what I want, Travel, Dance, Volunteer, Visit a 3rd world country - help those less fortunate. These are real life experiences I have put off. I guess my heads so full of dreams that I'm not ready to settle down in the real world with a full time job pumping out story after story as a journalist for the local paper or TV station.

I guess you could say I'm a passive spectator, watching my life unfold one day at a time. I like many others just hope that I come to a sudden realisation one day and get my life on track... but I guess spontaneity has got the better of me at the moment, knowing that their are so many possibilities excites me...why must we always have a plan!

For now I'm just going to step one foot in front of the other. Maybe somewhere along the line an opportunity will present itself...maybe not... maybe I'll work staraight away...maybe I'll travel... who knows. Life shouldnt be taken so seriously, I have the rest of my life to work! It seems to be all we live for... I don't want to look back and say 'I went to school, went to uni, went to work, got married, had kids, end of story."

I want to live a little!

The Art of Attraction

I believe very strongly that when it comes to desire, when it comes to attraction, that things are never black and white, things are very much shades of grey.

Attraction isn't logical and it isn't  a choice. What a person says they want and who they are actually attracted to are two different things. We aren't attracted to someone because it makes sense, it usually never makes sense. Even if every bone in your body tells you it's a bad idea. Even when you're perfectly content alone and not looking for anyone. Some people face the decision between what they think and what they feel, they know logically to pick one person but they're attraction to the other causes them to put all thinking aside.

I guess sometimes it's best to just go with it, the way in which we are attracted to people may change according lessons we learn in time.

Road Rage

So I've spent the morning typing up an assignment, I'm cranky because non residents are parked in our apartment spaces meaning I have to go downstairs and move my car every two hours because they're too selfish to pay for parking. The assignment is taking to long to upload to the internet, I'm running late for my presentation, I've kicked my toe on my desk about four times rushing in and out of the room... Not exactly the ideal way to start a day. I rush out the door and to my relief everyone on the road seems to be in as big a rush as I am. 

Just as I've calmed down and started to belt out some tunes from the stereo, a car cuts me off without an indicator causing me to swerve and swear uncontrollably. Like Carl Barron says, they can never hear you....they just see the ridiculous expressions on your face! 

I've come to notice ALOT of BAD drivers lately, my patience is beginning to ware thin, how much must I put up with before someones bad driving gets me or someone else hurt. Seeing as there is nothing I can do about it I feel a good bitch is the only way to vent a little frustration. 

SPEEDING

Everyone does it, including me, there’s no secret of that.  However, it simply amazes me how people will risk life and limb, weaving in and out of traffic, just to get a few cars ahead and shave a whopping 3 to 5 seconds of their drive time.

TAIL GATING

This one really drives me absolutely mad,  luckily, I can fight back.  Whenever I notice someone a little too far up my ass, I give the break a good shot once in a while, and watch them jump.   There really is no excuse for tailgating, its like walking in a line, standing on top of a person pushing your pelvis into their ass won't get you anywhere faster! They say 2-3 seconds between you and the car in front of you,  However…the 2-3 second rule also causes an additional problem that leads into my next annoyance…

CUTTING OFF DRIVERS

Unfortunately, while you may think you’re maintaining a safe driving distance from the car in front you, people in other lanes take that as a sign for them to jump into your safe buffer zone.  People seem to think that if you’re not bumper-to-bumper with the car in front of you, then they have free reign on taking that space for themselves. 

GIVE WAY TO ONE

You're stuck in a car park and there are cars coming from all directions trying to get out the same way you are. I like to work via the general rule of thumb of someone let you in so you let someone else in. If everyone followed this rule, things would be so much more simple. But no... there are the selfish pricks who won't give way to anyone, they're too concerned about themselves and how fast they're going to get out to worry about others. 

NO INDICATORS

I'm not a F%#$ing mind reader! 

Well I don't know about you but I sparingly like to flip the bird, remind them they're in the wrong and let out a little frustration of my own... Dear bad Townsville drivers...

Take that!

The man who crossed his legs

There he sat, his neck disguised by his over sized shoulders, a tank singlet, gym shorts, eating a burger. His hands were so large he could have held two burgers in each hand. Yet something had caught my eye, it didn't seem quite right. Masculine, Arrogant... and legs crossed? You heard me, one leg over the other. I just about fell on the ground laughing!

And so I came to ponder, was I right to criticise this man, I mean I was somewhat stereotyping him according to his appearance. For all I know behind all those muscles, steroids and protein shakes is a raging homosexual, the only thing missing was his little pinky fingers raised in the air while he was eating. Crudely sexist of me I know, I'm not sure where this ideal came from. We've all seen the old foot on the knee abused by business men in suits, it doesn't usually go the whole way.  So the question is, should a man cross his legs when seated?