Everyone is given the same allotment of energy every 24 hours and during much of that time on any given day everybody is faced with losses, lacks, and obstacles as a routine part of their lives.
Broadly, people react to this either out of Spiritual Energy (the Strong ones) with instinct stubbornness to handle them or out of Emotional Energy (the rest) with relative weakness. If Emotional Energy is like the base of a triangle that interacts with ones task, Spirit Energy is like the tip of that triangle situated above the best of what Emotional Energy has to offer. Strength “stubbornness,” I believe, is instinctual and therefore a Spiritual force of Nature while its opposite, often just as forceful, derives from negative Emotional Energy. Strong people recognize problems as normal; recognize that rejection and hostility from and problems generated by people are a part of life; and recognize every problem as an opportunity to extract lessons applicable to self-improvement. They are eager to push themselves past their prior best and that causes them to use every bit of their energy in the best possible way. As result, they become very efficient and effective.
Emotional Energy (EE) is that which normally and automatically triggers a Selfhood "Alarm Center" when there is the threat of danger or when something important is about to happen or is happening. Emotions not only initiate and direct actions and reactions but sustain and engage them. When one is afraid, one will probably run longer and faster than otherwise. That is why coaches give "pep talks" before the game--to make the team "emotionally involved"--to "pump up" the athletes (Ornstein p64). EE is personal, as in being guided by likes and dislikes and also expectations of receiving gifts, recognition, or rewards--as judged by the monitored feedback from ones interpreted experiences with other people and by selfishness. EE quickly burns up so much energy that one is tired before completing the task and in the process its intensity varies. The Stage I part of EE mood swings starts with great enthusiasm for doing a job; for the personal in-process benefits (e.g. fun and doing something important); and for anticipated personal rewards at the finish line. But when losses, lacks, or obstacles are encountered their minds become inclined to "give up." Or, when they are constructively critiqued to sharpen or polish skills, their feelings and self-esteem are hurt to the point of wanting to avoid that critic, instead of extracting the lesson and making a point to improve. Then enthusiasm fades into Stage II whereby one follows attractive distractions. Stage III is "giving up." This sets up a pattern of weakness so that when they are overwhelmed by increasingly less difficult difficulties they look to see how they can avoid dealing with such problems. If they get started, they quickly go to Stages II and III. As a result they revert to their "special world" and engage in familiar self-defeating acts--things like procrastination; denying their problems exist; "escapes" as in partying or taking drugs or staying on the run. Of course, bad acts snowball into a series of bad habits and vicious cycles.
When someone is concerned enough to try to help them solve problems and then offer suggestions, Weak people's first response is to say: "this won't work!" Strong people never say such a thing, even though that type of problem is known not to have ever been solved. Weak persons do nothing to try to solve the problem because they lack courage; lack energy; lack a willingness to try; and fear failure or success. Instead of being concerned about solving the problem which benefits them and instead of being willing to push themselves to do what they know they are capable of doing, their concern is with themselves (e.g. fear of experiencing another failure if the new method does not work). Inside their "special world" little gets done toward a destination. |
