There was an individual on a radio program that was talking about his success. He came from a background of poverty, and despair, and he railed against the system that puts others in the situation that he was once in. He described how he slowly made the trek to fame and fortune, and "Made something of himself". And he stated how he believed others could do the same. That's an interesting choice of words that we hear from the time that we are young. "Make something of yourself". His interpretation was the description of fame and fortune. It's disturbing in a sense because it falls right in line with the capitalism play that exists within this country. To "Make something of ones self" is thought by many to be equated to having money and value of material things that give the illusion of not being impoverished, or wanting from anyone. It is a constant goal in this country that people maintain that requires them to work hard within the scheme of the "system" that we have created so that they can have "things". Whether those things be a house with land, a spouse, an expensive car, or creating an excess of liquidity in their own value, people are trained early in life to have the idea that they must bust their asses to "Make something of themselves", so that they are not strains on society, and they become a productive individual. Which people do, and I don't begrudge anyone who wants to make money, and have things. That is their desire to do so, then so be it. But is that all there is? What if making something of ones self is far above the concept of capitalism ideology.What if making something of ones self is beyond the tangible aspects of materialism.
There are many people who chase those aspects of what they believe are "something" all of their lives. They are completely driven, and preoccupied with the advancement of their material gains. The pursuit of such gains seems to exist within quite a few of us to different degrees through osmosis of this American culture. People constantly look over the horizon to things that could make them happy, and show the world that they are a productive person who has made something of themselves. But what this society lacks is the teaching of looking within yourself to make something. People don't create goals to be "Self Aware". They don't teach that early in schools, but being self aware is the most important aspect of existing as a human being that people miss, and never try to aspire to. Maybe people miss this aspect because they don't know what it is, or what to do, or some can't even see the point to strive for something as intangible as that. There lies the problem with that particular corner of cultural aspirations within a capitalist society. You can't see and touch self awareness. It doesn't pay bills, or buy groceries, or earn a living for you. Nor can it be found in any books or TV show. It doesn't require organized religion, but it does require a certain depth of spiritual acknowledgment. It is a task, and a hard one that everyone should want to take on because it is a selfish endeavor that has selfless benefits.
What is being self aware? Self awareness is not a fantasy at all. It is the most based in reality condition a person can make for themselves. It involves the idea of introspection on a high level to figure out the inner workings of you. Being self aware is understanding your personal place in the universe, and understanding that there is something greater than you.Not necessarily a deity, but the situation of your life as it pertains to you and the universe. It is not all about just you, but the ability to see that you are a part of something bigger that you can have an impact on. Whether it be a cause in life, or an acceptance that you are connected to the fabric of nature and everyone else, or knowing what it was that you were placed here for, someone who is self aware understands themselves, and is constantly asking the questions of why they act a certain way, and challenge not the way anyone else thinks, but why they think the way they do, and how they came to that conclusion. The self aware person understands that it is not solely the monetary or material aspects of accumulation that matter most. It is the idea of what ripples are provided by ones drop in the pond. It is good and well to have money, power, or fame if someone wants that and gets it. But the making something of yourself comes from how you use all of what you have to make something just a little better than you found it. Whether that be easing the suffering of someone, creating something that benefits someone, or improving a condition that is in dire straits, or just plain contributing to the betterment of some aspect greater than an individual. Making something of ones self is not just hoarding money,and more money for a rainy day, or living in a luxurious house because you can. We as human beings, just like the things in nature have a purpose, and what we do, or not affects the chain of everything. Some will argue with me that they "Worked hard to obtain the things they have, and anyone could do the same." That is the robotic answer given when people feel attacked for having material aspects of wealth, and the standardized societal descriptions of success. They resent the people seemingly trying to make them feel guilty for having. That is really not what it's about. It's about the aspect of individualism instead of collectivism. The "Mine all mine" philosophy behind greed, and the thing that resonates in the American consciousness. I believe that the way we teach people to achieve is backwards. We teach people to search for things outside of ourselves, and then inward. it should be the other way around. There would be many less people with inner turmoil and more collectivism ideologies in the long run if we taught young minds to search for things within first. The result of that backwards philosophy is the individual who is not self aware.
People who are not self aware have a constant struggle, because they have no idea who they are, and just what they stand for. Their ideas are never their own, but borrowed interpretations of others that they admire, and want to be like until someone else comes along to latch onto, and be like. They constantly live for something else, and are constantly searching for something over the horizon that is not in their grasp yet, that will fulfill their happiness, and guide them somewhere, but they don't know where. They are preoccupied with the petty aspects of what other people do or say, because their mind is not focused on their particular task of owning an agenda to make themselves and their own personal journey remarkable. They are unhappy plain and simple, and unable to reach inside themselves to understand what makes them tick, and how to drive their own soul. They suffer inside, and eventually it spills to their behavior outside as they repeat mistakes, and wander aimlessly trying to find themselves. The phrases "Tortured soul", or "Troubled individual" or someone who says they "Have their demons", is all the result of individuals who are not self aware, and bereft on the inside because they are chasing things without, and not within. The "something" that is always looked for may be right in front of them, and inside them, but there is a feeling of loss for these folks because they think that someone needs to show it to them. They want something, but have no idea what it is, and can't articulate it by any stretch. They may turn to all kinds of things negative to feed their need for understanding, and their feelings of isolation from the rest of the world.
Introspection is not easy. It takes a lot of hard looks at ones self, and discovering quite a few things that are very unpleasant to know that you possess. It is a hard journey to be self aware, and there is growing and changing constantly. sometimes even reinventing ones self, and changing ideas about how the world works, and how they view things in order for epiphanies to occur. To find out just who you are is a lifelong work in progress, but once you are in the process, you are at peace. You never feel the need for conflict, you understand just why you have reached certain conclusions that you have reached, you have empathy for others, and their struggles, and most importantly, you are happy. Happy that there is growth inside you to be who you want to be. Happy that even though you may not have all of the things you want right now, you understand what you want completely, and you also understand that the journey is just as rewarding as the reward itself. No person or thing will change that happiness. You also understand that no matter what position you are in life, someone 1)is worse off, 2)Has gone through what you are going through 3)Is going through it now, or 4)Can benefit, or suffer at the hands of your ripples. That you are part of a large spider web connected to everything in some fashion, and that things are bigger than your petty needs is an important aspect of being self aware, Also having empathy for others..Just putting yourself in someone's shoes to examine another point of view is crucial to an open mind that leads to self awareness.And it all starts with the questions, "Who am I, and what do I want in life?" Yes the questions are that easy, but the answers are extremely hard, and may change constantly. But in order for one to understand ones self, those are two major questions to revisit constantly.
A selfish endeavor such as looking inside yourself can lead to a selfless view of the world, and how you perceive your role. Selfish, leads to selfless,which leads to self aware. And that my friends can only lead to happiness. And if you are happy, you will want to infect everyone else, and make the world better. Which is in my opinion truly "Making something of yourself."
