Learning From The School of Life

Good day peoples,

Hope ya'll good and you've got your thing on lock. Been tied for a while but I'm back and this time round on a more serious tip. If you turn on the TV these days (local or international), you'll see all of your favorite windbags talking about education reform. They tell us we need to give the schools more money for textbooks and that we need to improve our focus on certain subjects. If you ask me, this is all a load of bull. Growing up, I wanted the best education in the area I really wanted to achieve in -- my life. Life is a bi**h, but it can teach you things no one else can. Any fool can go through life hoping for a chance to be on top, but it takes a real professional to know what he wants and take it. Most won't ever learn how. Luckily for you, school is in session, and I'll be your teacher. Pay attention and you just might make it through what I call the school of life, understood?

Use Your Head
Like most things, you use it or lose it. I’ve seen plenty of my crew who jumped before they looked and ended up in the piss pot. You’ve got to have smarts to survive in this world. Anytime you need to make a move, stop and think. This small space of time will save you and your crew a huge headache down the road. Obviously there will be times when you need to act fast, but if you’ve been taking the time to plan, you’ll almost always make the right call. Fail to plan, plan to fail. No dude ever stops learning. We would still be wiping our backsides with leaves if we did. If someone in your group is bringing down the operation with their incompetence, well, you’ve gotta do what you’ve gotta do.

Act Like You’ve Got a Pair
The shy get stomped. When you enter a room, you have to command it. You are the best, so know it and act like it. I’m not talking about being a cocky dude. I’m saying you need to exude confidence and have some real balls. Make decisions and stand by them. Don’t piddle around trying to make up your mind. Be firm and decisive. Fear is what kills half of the people around there enivironment. To be victorious, you have to completely eliminate fear. Fear is why you make excuses for not doing what you have to. Anytime I feel that sickening sensation of fear crawling up my back, I do what I need to do anyway. It pays off, too. See, the funny thing about fear is, on the other side of it lies a life of bliss and success. So have some balls and walk with your chin up. It’s the only way to get respect.

Finish The Job
In my job, you finish the job or they finish you. Procrastination and half-assed work is unacceptable. How can you reach the top of a table with two legs? Your focus should be on building a foundation of solid and complete work. Figure out a list of what you have to do and start with the biggest and most difficult task. Knocking out the big guns gives you a snowball effect, making it easier to finish everything else. The key here, class, is focus. You can get anything done if you just focus on it. Be sure to get the whole crew in on it and the rewards will be more than enough to go around. Those who refuse to be team players won’t last long, in or out of the unit.

Respect Your Superiors
Your boss is in his position for a reason, despite what you might think about him. If he’s not following protocol or if he’s a big fesso, be patient and he’ll be out of there soon. In the meantime, you have to be the bigger man and respect him as your superior. That means following orders and biting your tongue. Don’t take anything too personally. You’ll look better in the eyes of your fellow subordinates for keeping your cool. Remember that the way of the world is that everything comes back to you. If you don’t respect your boss, how are you to expect the people under you to do the same? Just keep in mind that true leaders aren’t pompous blowhards. The great ones are down there in the mud with the rest of their men. Your time will come.

Keep Your Cool
You should never let your emotions get the better of you. Sure, sometimes the s*** hits the fan, but you have to keep your cool. Don’t get me wrong; I have lost my temper a couple of times here and there, but there is a time and place. Never lose your cool when dealing in business. It gives the whole thing a bad vibe and will rebound onto the other guys involved. That’s not something you want. When dealing with your lady, you have to be the calm one, too. A true capo uses his brain and gets things back in working order rationally. The key to keeping your cool goes back to confidence. If you’re confident in yourself and what you have to say, what’s to get all hot for? Not everyone is going to agree with you. Just worry about yourself.

School Is Now In Session
I hope you took notes and learned something today class. The school of life can be hard, but if you’re smart and play your cards right, you can come out with an A+. Always be willing to educate yourself. Treat every situation as a learning experience. Isn’t that all this life really is? It’s ultimately up to you. You can go out and take it by the horns or you can sit, hope and wonder. Whatever the case, life is what you make it. And that’s the ultimate test. I hope you’ve studied.

the audacious truth