What is Self-Action Leadership?

 

Chapter 3

What is Self-Action Leadership 

In BOOK the FIRST, Chapter Three, Self-Action Leadership (SAL) was loosely defined as: "taking complete personal responsibility for your thoughts, speech, and actions—and any consequences engendered thereby."

This chapter expands upon this definition by providing additional contour and nuance to the holistic nature of SAL as a comprehensive personal leadership paradigm and toolbox. It further illuminates the potential SAL has to transform your life when properly learned and applied. 

Dr. JJ at age 7
circa 1987

Self-Action Leadership is a new theory of personal leadership development. As the previous chapter discussed, SAL is hewn out of the ore of existing academic and philosophical theories (i.e. self-leadership, action research, existentialism, and autoethnography). 

SAL was constructed over a period of nearly 40 years by virtue of an extended analytic autoethnographic study. I began this study at age seven (7), when I first began journaling and learning about goal setting, values clarification, and other, related personal development principles and practices. 

From this tender age onward, I have been deeply interested in and fascinated by all of the subjects that have played a role in this comprehensive self-study (i.e. personal development, leadership, literature, history, philosophy, theology and religion, etc.).

Conceptually speaking, Self-Action Leadership (SAL) is substantively analogous to self-leadership (S-L) theory, which was pioneered in the early 1980s by Charles C. Manz. Despite these substance similarities, SAL introduces original theoretical constructs in the form of a theory and a model that are both unique from S-L theory. In addition, SAL invokes a moral imperative that S-L implies, but does not explicitly mandate. 

With this in mind, SAL is defined more specifically as: morally informed self-leadership that is action-oriented, focused on long-term results, and aimed at a continual rise in the Existential Growth of self and others. 

SELF-ACTION LEADERSHIP  (SAL)

Morally informed self-leadership that is action-oriented, focused on long-term results,

and aimed at a continual rise in the Existential Growth of self and others.

Existential Growth will be defined in greater detail later in this book. For now, I invite you to reflect back upon the its basic definition from BOOK the FIRST, Chapter One, which is: the growth, progress, and maturation of one's holistic potential. 

While the ultimate goal of self-leadership may be to succeed, or to win (whatever the cost), the ultimate goal of Self-Action Leadership is to do the right thing at the right time for the right reasons with the understanding that in the end, right makes might, (1) not the other way around. 

Unlike S-L, SAL explicitly requires that one's actions bring about the best long-term benefits and results for everyone involved in a situation—even if a measure of pain must be suffered in the short run to bring about noble ends. In the words of a former U.S. Congressman and member of the House of Representatives from the State of South Carolina:

"Jesus lost a voice vote to a guy named Barabbus. Martin Luther King, Jr. was assassinated. Dietrich Bonhoffer was put to death. Abraham Lincoln lost more races than he won. How you conduct yourself matters. We [live] in a society, in a culture, that values winning ... [including] cheating to win [and] getting away with committing penalties. ... [That is the wrong approach because] the way we do things matters. ... Winning is [not] the ultimate objective. ... The ultimate objective is to lead an honorable life." (2) 

SAL is designed to assist us in leading honorable lives. As human beings, we are imperfect, and that's okay—as long as we are striving to gradually and steadily improve over time and do our best to avoid hurting other people in the process. Sadly, however, some self-leaders are genuinely evil people who intentionally do bad things and commit terrible atrocities for selfish and self-serving purposes. 

Truth be told, some of the most effective self-leaders throughout history have also been some of the worst human beings on the planet. Adolf Hitler is perhaps the most classic and cliché historical example of this nefarious phenomenon. As an unusually talented, disciplined, and remarkably capable self-leader and influencer of others, the fiendish führer of the Third Reich successfully employed a variety of self-leadership-oriented "cognitive and behavioral strategies" (3) in pursuit of his ambitious and aggressive military and geopolitical objectives.

The problem with Hilter was, of course, that his actions were self-centered, immoral, and ruthlessly violent. The result of this extraordinary, yet utterly evil, self-leadership practice was the bloodiest war and the deadliest genocide in human history. 

Simply stated, SAL provides the moral compass that S-L theory alone lacks. Thus, SAL empowers you to not just permanently succeed, but to benefit others and help them to permanently succeed in the process. Then, when your time in this world is up—a reality we all face eventually—you can leave behind a lasting legacy that will make those who knew you proud. Such a legacy will continue to positively impact whomever you leave behind. 

S-L can help you to do great (or terrible) things.

        SAL, on the other hand, can empower you to become great by doing good. 

Sam Houston
1793-1863

"I have but one maxim:

do right and risk the consequences."

—Sam Houston

Contrasting the Lives of Hitler and Mandela

To better illustrate the difference between morally-neutral self-leadership and morally-informed Self-Action Leadership, it is illustrative to compare and contrast the lives and political careers of Adolf Hitler and Nelson Mandela. Ironically and surprisingly, these two men's dramatically divergent journeys through life actually resembled each other in several significant ways in their earlier years. 

To wit: both men felt ostracized and marginalized as young men. Both held personal and political grudges for real or perceived injustices inflicted on them by other people and groups. Both were intelligent, capable, and highly driven men who were passionate about their respective countries' potential for greatness. Both worked assiduously and fought bravely and passionately in an effort to bring about national changes. Then, to top it all off, both men were imprisoned for violently fomenting civil unrest. 

The profound moral divergence that ultimately separated these two historical figures lasting legacies began to unfold during the time they spent serving their respective prison sentences. 

Hitler used his time in jail to let his bitterness fester and ferment, leading him to write a book—Mein Kampf ("My Struggle")—wherein he outlined his philosophy of Aryan racial supremacy, anti-Semitism, and German nationalism, power, expansionism, and global domination.

Mandela, who served a much longer prison sentence than Hitler, allowed his heart to soften during the nearly three decades he spent behind bars. Guided by the principles of self-reliance and personal power championed in William Ernest Henley's classic poem—Invictus, which is a Latin term that means "unconquered," "unsubdued," or "invincible"—Mandela charted a whole new course for his life that he pursued with integrity and nobility for the remainder of his days.

"It matters not how strait the gate,
   How charged with punishments the scroll,
I am the master of my fate;
   I am the captain of my soul." (4)

South African flag painted on a wall

The moral and dispositional transformation Nelson allowed his heart, mind, and soul to undergo in prison prefaced his steadily growing influence and popularity, which led to his election as president of South Africa less than five years after being released from prison. Today, Mandela is credited (in part) with bringing about a formal end to the racist practices of apartheid. 

Make no mistake about it; both Mandela and Hitler were remarkable self-leaders in terms of their overall achievements and influence. However, of the two men, only Mandela qualifies as a self-action leader because of the moral and ethical components involved.

Moreover, because Hitler chose to pursue an evil pathway, his achievements had a relatively short shelf-life. The thousand-year reign he promised lasted only twelve years, half of which proved hellish for many (if not most) of his countrymen, to say nothing of the worldwide fear, pain, death, destruction, and terror experienced by hundreds of millions of others because of the horrendous wrath his malevolent actions unleashed. 

Along the way, six million Jews and approximately 75 million other soldiers and civilians lost their lives at a financial cost of trillions of dollars. By the time Hitler committed suicide on April 30, 1945, much of Europe and Southeast Asia lay in ruins.

It ranks among the most colossal and evil disasters and tragedies in human history. 

Despite the relative similarities between Hitler and Mandela's earlier days, the two individuals could not have ended their lives more differently. Hitler died ignominiously in the extreme at age 56 by his own cowardly hand, after which his body was doused with gasoline and ingloriously torched by Joseph Goebbels—his equally nefarious minister of propaganda—who, in turn, joined his own wife in suicide after poisoning their seven children. 

Nations from throughout the British
Commonwealth and the rest of the world paused
to pay their respects to the internationally admired,
renowned, and respected Nelson Mandela.

Mandela, on the other hand, who had become an international hero—even a legend—passed away peacefully of natural causes incident to old age in 2013 at age 95. After his body lay honorably in State for two days, he was given an official State Funeral attended by representatives from nearly a hundred nations, including Prime Ministers David Cameron, Stephen Harper, and Tony Abbot of the United Kingdom, Canada, and Australia, respectively, President Barack Obama of the United States, and former U.S. Presidents George W. Bush and Bill Clinton.  

What markedly divergent legacies Hitler and Mandela left behind for us to observe, study, and reflect upon! This dramatic historical duality underscores in bold colors and stark tones the importance of the moral and ethical components of self-leadership, and therefore the absolute need for self-action leadership.

While self-leadership alone is often hijacked by those who seek to swindle and subjugate, SAL is the domain of those who views are morally monolithic and therefore aimed at thinking, saying, and doing what is right, with the potential long-term consequences of one's thoughts, speech, and actions always in the forefront of their compassionate, empathetic, and tolerant minds and hearts. Thus, self-action leaders seek to ever reverberate that righteous refrain of freedom: 

"Do what is right; let the consequence follow.

Battle for freedom in spirit and might;

And with stout hearts look ye forth till tomorrow.

God will protect you; then do what is right!" (5)

The effective exercise of self-leadership will usually empower external successes in the short-run. But only SAL will ensure long-term successes that are mutually beneficial to both YOU and those that you influence. 

Right and Wrong are Real

Given the essential nature of the moral and ethical components of SAL, it bears defining "Right" and "Wrong" in as objective a sense as is humanly possible. Of all the aims of this comprehensive Life Leadership textbook, this one is the most important of all; for it is the firm foundation upon which all the other aims either rise or fall.

At present, we live in a world where many people adhere to the notion that there really is no real right and wrong or absolute truth. These people believe that each individual is entitled to "their own truth," which, like a flexible acrobat can be conveniently contorted to condone whatever behavior or lifestyle one seeks to pursue—no matter how arbitrary, whimsical, or even nonsensical.

While it is certainly true that each individual has the liberty to believe in this notion of moral relativity, it is just as true that long-term consequences inevitably demonstrate over time that some behaviors and lifestyles are unquestionably more beneficial and prosperous in nature than are others.

That's just the way things are!

Given this objective reality, it bears offering up what my research has uncovered concerning the reality of absolute truth and the accompanying definitions of right and wrong in an objective sense. Simply stated, RIGHT choices result in positive and constructive long-term consequences for self and others, while WRONG choices do the exact opposite, resulting in negative and destructive long-term consequences for self and others.        

RIGHT Choices

Thoughts, speech, and actions that result in positive and

constructive long-term consequences for self and others.

WRONG Choices

Thoughts, speech, and actions that result in negative and

destructive long-term consequences for self and others.

The operative word in these two definitions is "Long-Term." There are many choices that may seem to be right in the moment, but over time prove themselves to be quite wrong. This is especially true when it comes to human appetites, and perhaps sexual behavior in particular. 

For example, whenever you are sexually titillated or tempted, it may seem sensible enough to go ahead and gratify your natural desires and lusts. In the heat of the moment, doing so might not only feel right, but will usually feel good—at least in a sentient sense. Does this mean it is right to indulge your sexuality whenever and with whomever (or whatever) you feel like?

For a variety of obvious reasons, the answer to this question is clearly "No." 

On the other hand, there are also many choices that may seem wrong in the moment, but over time may prove themselves to be quite right. A classic example of this is the exercise of "tough love." As a parent, teacher, or leader, it might seem wrong (or at the very least, unpleasant) to reprove or otherwise discipline a child, student, or subordinate on the altar of long-term growth and progress when moral wisdom dictates the necessity of such a course. 

But despite any and all difficulty in making said decisions, they usually prove to be correct in the end. I know this from personal experience. While I never liked being corrected, reproved, or disciplined, I was always grateful later on for those parents, teachers, and leaders who wisely took the path of greater resistance in a sincere effort to help me in the long run.  

Some consequences quickly follow a word or deed. Other consequences take years, decades, a lifetime, or even centuries or millennia to fully flower (or decay) into easily recognizable "Right" (or "Wrong") choices.

This is just one reason why it is so important to study HISTORY!

History is full of examples of those who have tried to operate their lives under alternative and erroneous principles and the dangerous practices that accompany them. In virtually every case, any positive results accrued therefrom were either short-lived, fragmentary, or camouflaged in the end.  

So many justify wrong behavior on the promise of obtaining pleasurable and rewarding short-term consequences and preferred temporary arrangements; while so relatively few take the road less traveled and embrace the promise of long-term benefits and blessings!

The bottom line—and the absolute fact of nature and the universe—is that there really is a real and objective "Right" and a real and objective "Wrong." Moreover, I believe that deep down everyone knows it—although not everyone is sufficiently wise, mature, and secure to recognize and acknowledge it.

The truth of this fact was eloquently articulated and made plain by none other than William James nearly a century-and-a-half ago, when he wrote:  

"What interest, zest, or excitement can there be in achieving the right way, unless we are enabled to feel that the wrong way is also a possible and a natural way, — nay, more, a menacing and an imminent way? And what sense can there be in condemning ourselves for taking the wrong way, unless we need have done nothing of the sort, unless the right way was open to us as well? I cannot understand the willingness to act, no matter how we feel, without the belief that acts are really good and bad." (6)

A fundamental difference between human beings and animals is our cranial possession of a prefrontal cortex and our metaphysical capacity to develop a morally and ethically-operative conscience. 

While we cannot scientifically prove the anatomical existence of a conscience, nor can we empirically delineate exactly what a conscience is and how it operates, it is doubtful that any human being ever lived who has not experienced vestiges of its visceral insights, intuition, nudgings, and promptings.

The job of your conscience is to guide you toward RIGHT thoughts, words, and deeds and steer you away from WRONG actions, speech, and musings. 

Jiminy Cricket!

        As unsophisticated as it might sound, it really is that simple.

We can't prove it scientifically; but I'd stake my life on the veracity of this basic truth. At Freedom Focused, we believe all human beings are born with a conscience, which is either sharpened or dulled over time in more-or-less direct proportion to the heed or disregard that YOU and I choose to afford it. We define "conscience" as: an inner metaphysical light and compass that viscerally guides, directs, and prompts you to think about, say, and do what is right, good, and constructive, while avoiding what is wrong, evil, and destructive.  

CONSCIENCE

An inner metaphysical light and compass that viscerally guides, directs, and prompts you to think about, say, and do what is right, good, and constructive while avoiding

what is wrong, evil, and destructive.  

Your conscience is sharpened by thoughts, speech, and acts rooted in honesty, kindness, selflessness, sincerity, and TRUTH. Your conscience is dulled by thoughts, speech, and acts rooted in dishonesty, meanness, selfishness, insincerity, and ERROR. 

How then, are TRUTH and ERROR defined? 

We define truth as: the way things really are, were, and will be—as delineated by the continuous interplay of Universal Laws and natural consequences over time, and error as: Anything that deviates in any way from the TRUTH.  

TRUTH

The way things really were, are, and will be—as delineated by the

continuous interplay of Universal Laws and natural consequences over time.

ERROR

Anything that deviates in any way from the truth.  

Sir Winston Churchill
1874-1965

Perhaps it was our pal, Sir Winston Churchill, who said it best when he once declared that: the truth is incontrovertible. Malice may attack it and ignorance may deride it; but in the end, there it is!

"The truth is incontrovertible.

Malice may attack it and ignorance may deride it;

But in the end...  there it is."

—Winston Churchill

The reality of truth—and the existence of right and wrong—is indeed an incontrovertible fact. It is also an inconvenient reality that is perennially out of style with much of humanity. This is why countless human beings—including all of us to some extent—seek incessantly, albeit fruitlessly, to escape its penetrating presence throughout our culture, society, world, and universe.

You don't have to embrace a specific ideology or vote a certain party line to recognize the existence of physical and metaphysical truisms that transcend politics and philosophy. Nor do you have to belong to a certain religious faith or attend a specific church to accede the existence of a categorical moral dichotomy differentiating right from wrong. 

What you do have to do is listen to your Conscience, which can serve as an existential guide pointing the way to TRUTH to all who are willing to listen. Then, when you know what is good, right, and true, you can choose to think about, say, and do what is right while eschewing what is wrong to the best of your finite ability and capacity. 

The goal, therefore, is not PERFECTION; perfection is not possible. Instead of perfection, the aim is to exhibit a real intent to pay close attention to whatever your Conscience is commanding you to do and then seek to carry out those commands to the very best of your imperfect ability. 

And when you fall short, or choose to disregard your Conscience, which we all do to varying degrees, you must be willing to rectify the deleterious consequences of your speech or actions to the best of your ability and then continually strive to improve upon your past performances. 

If you follow this course, your Conscience will become sharper over time and YOU will gradually become a better person as a result. If you abandon this course, your conscience will become progressively duller until it becomes muted, and YOUR moral and ethical capacity will gradually deteriorate as a result.

If right and wrong are real, then good and evil also exist as real forces and polar opposites of each other. If this is true, what exactly are "GOOD" and "EVIL," and how do you define them? 

According to Dr. M. Scott Peck, M.D., evil is a form of mental illness. In fact, he refers to evil as the "ultimate disease." (7) We agree with Peck; however, we believe that evil is more than a mere malaise of the mind that originates ultimately as a malevolent metaphysical manifestation in one's heart and soul.

EVIL drives thoughts, speech, and actions designed to purposely deceive, discourage, debase, damage, or destroy oneself or others. In its darkest shades, evil is akin an existential black hole, where all light (i.e. truth, goodness, kindness, honesty, etc.) is unable to escape.

GOODNESS, on the other hand, is marked by truth, light, transparency, and an accurate conception of oneself, others, and the world and universe beyond. It is further flagged by compassion and consideration, equality, fairness, kindness, and respect.

Good actions are an outgrowth of the Golden Rule—treat others as you would want to be treated—and where appropriate/relevant, the Platinum Rule—treat others as they would want to be treated. (8)

Peck points out further that, "a mark of the [existentially] advanced is their awareness of their own laziness [and other weaknesses]." (9) In other words, the more goodness a person possesses, the more they will be able to recognize and acknowledge their own imperfections and shortcomings. 

It is a person's goodness that empowers him or her to detect and recognize whatever badness exists inside oneself. For this reason, it is the very best people (those possessing the most goodness and humility) who most clearly comprehend their own fallibility and foibles. They are also the quickest and sincerest in admitting this fact in both private and public. 

Conversely, the more badness a person develops, the less attuned they become to their own badness. It is therefore goodness and its concomitant humility that detects, recognizes, and acknowledge badness in itself. 

That is why people like Hitler rarely, if ever, see themselves as being evil. 

Badness, or evil, leads to deception—and particularly self-deception—which leads one to convince oneself that he or she is good, or at least not too bad, when in reality, they may have developed a lifestyle marked by debasement, deceit, and debauchery. The deeper and more entrenched one's evil, the more one will be blinded to one's own badness. Conversely, the purer one's goodness, the clearer one will be attuned to one's own imperfection. 

Another way to contrast good and evil is to consider the difference between clarity and convolution. According to Peck, evil harbors a perpetual "desire to confuse," or otherwise obscure reality (10). Rightness or goodness, on the other hand, continuously seeks to clarify and illuminate things as they really were in the past, are in the present, and will be in the future. 

Everyone in the world
needs SAL & Serendipity

Every human being that has ever lived on Planet Earth has thought, said, and done things that are wrong. No one is perfect! However, that does not mean that everyone is evil. Making a mistake or screwing up doesn't make you evil; after all, to err is truly human. Folly itself does not equate with evil, nor does it always lead to evil. 

Evil begins to sprout when you follow up folly with intentional aims to deceive, discourage, debase, damage, or destroy yourself or others. (11) Anyone willing to accept responsibility for one's own thoughts, speech, actions, and the consequences engendered thereby can avoid evil, regardless of the errors of one's past.  

SAL is NOT a RELIGION

It bears noting here that the purpose of this Life Leadership textbook is not to declare and proclaim what is right and wrong in every minute particular. Aside from the practical impossibility of such an attempt, we explicitly make no attempt to do so. Declarations and proclamations of moral and ethical rule-based behaviors is the purview of true religion and the integrity of individual minds. 

As Ralph Waldo Emerson once put it: nothing is at last sacred but the integrity of your own mind. (12)

A young Ralph Waldo Emerson
1803-1882

"Nothing is at last sacred but the integrity of your own mind."

—Ralph Waldo Emerson

This book is not designed to dictate the particulars of every thought, word, or deed you could or should execute throughout your life and career; that is YOUR job! This book merely affirms that a real RIGHT and WRONG does in fact exist. 

We therefore encourage individuals everywhere to listen to their consciences for their own sakes and the sakes of everyone else whom they might impact or influence. As some colleagues and I wrote in an academic journal article, Dr. JJ and Freedom Focused always intend to:

"Leave precise policy questions to politicians, specific legal questions to lawyers and judges, technical queries concerning ethics and morals to ethicists and philosophers, and detailed "thou shalts" and "thou shalt nots" to prophets, pastors, and pontiffs. Our goal is NOT ... to dictate detailed directives in every arena of choice. Our seminal intention is to teach correct principles—generally speaking—and then encourage (and hopefully inspire) wise self-governance among an extremely diverse audience of individuals and organizations as they move forward to confront the multifarious moral and practical decisions and dilemmas that continually creep into their everyday lives and organizations." (13)

SAL Mantra

Right is right and wrong is wrong and never the twain shall meet.

Simply stated, right choices lead to freedom, growth, happiness, success, and inner peace. They also promote the development of character, capacity, and integrity. 

Wrong choices lead to bondage, moral atrophy, misery, failure, and anxiety. They also promote the decay of character, capacity, and integrity.  

Do you want your personal humanity to flourish or diminish? The choice is yours, but you cannot wish away the existence of right and wrong any more than you could wish away your own existence or the presence of Universal Laws in the world, solar system, or galaxy. Similarly, you cannot circumvent the consequences of your decisions any more than you can wish away the presence and reality of gravity, inertia, or motion. 

When the bells of conscience toll in your life, you owe it to yourself and your fellow human beings to think, speak, and act in ways that will contribute to the long-term well-being of all whose lives may be affected by your decisions. In the words of Michael Faraday, that great nineteenth century English scientist: I will simply express my strong belief, that that point of self-education, which consists in teaching the mind to resist its desires and inclinations, until they are proved to be right, is the most important of all, not only in things of natural philosophy, but in every department of daily life.

Michael Faraday
1791-1867

"I will simply express my strong belief, that that point of self-education, which consists in teaching the mind to resist its desires and inclinations, until they are proved to be right, is the most important of all, not only in things of natural philosophy, but in every department of daily life."

—Michael Faraday

A sure way to distinguish between right and wrong choices is to observe the measure of their impact on your Existential Growth over time. Self-action leaders are not merely interested in getting better grades, improving their relationships, or making more money. Self-action leaders seek a comprehensive philosophy and an accompanying toolkit that addresses the full spectrum of human concerns, challenges, problems, and questions. 

Self-action leaders don't just want to get something; they want to become something.

They seek holistic change and comprehensive growth that elevates, transforms, and transmutes their very existence—your very being—into something better and greater than it was before they embraced SAL. More importantly, they are willing to pay any price and exert any effort to achieve the difficult and elusive, yet unspeakably magnificent rewards that await.  

Are YOU so willing?

In Your Journal

• How have you defined truth in the past?

• Have the ideas in this chapter altered or otherwise influenced your previous conceptions of right, wrong, and truth? If so, how so?

• What past experiences have you had with your conscience?

• What do you believe your conscience is?

• What is something you could do TODAY to sharpen your conscience for the future. 

—Dr. JJ

Wednesday, April 17, 2024

Palm Beach Gardens, Florida, USA

Author's Note: This is the 384th Blog Post Published by Freedom Focused LLC since November 2013 and the 195th consecutive weekly blog published since August 31, 2020.   

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Chapter 3 Notes:

1.  Lincoln, A. (1860). Cooper Union Address. February 27, 1860.

2.  FoxNews. (2018). Martha MaCallum. The Story with Martha MacCallum. Interview of Trey Gowdy. February 6, 2018.

3.  Neck, C.P. & Houghton, J.D. (2006). Two Decades of Self-Leadership Theory and Research: Past Developments, Present Trends, and Future Possibilities. Journal of Managerial Psychology. Volume 21, Issue 4, p. 270-295. DOI 10.1108/02683940610663097. Page 270.

4.  Invictus by William Ernest Henley. In Cook, R. J. (1958/1997). One Hundred and One Famous Poems: With a Prose Supplement (Revised Edition). Lincolnwood, IL: Contemporary Books. Page 95.

5.  From Hymn #237, “Do What is Right.” Hymns of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints. 1985. Salt Lake City, UT: Deseret Book Company.

6.  From James’ work, The Dilemma of Determinism (1884).

7.  Peck, M.S. (1983). People of the Lie: The Hope for Healing Human Evil. New York, NY: Touchstone. Page 264.

8.  An extension of the Golden Rule, the Platinum Rule is an idea developed by personality expert Tony Alessandra. The Platinum Rule involves “treating others the way they want to be treated.” The Platinum Rule takes into account personality and other individual differences and preferences, which thereby prompt us to treat others in ways that are not only kind and compassionate (Golden Rule), but also considerate of another person’s individual styles and preferences. See Alessandra’s New Edition Relationship Strategies: Using the Platinum Rule to Create Instant Rapport. (Audio CDs). Nightingale Conant. 

9.  Peck, M.S. (1983). People of the Lie: The Hope for Healing Human Evil. New York, NY: Touchstone. Page 264.

10.  Ibid. Page 179. 

11.  See BOOK the FIFTH, Chapter 23 for more information on the Five D’s of the Dark Shadow—Deception, Discouragement, Debasement, Damage, and Destruction.

12.  Ziff, L., Ed. (1985) Ralph Waldo Emerson: Selected Essays. New York, NY: Penguin Classics. A reference to a quote in his essay, Self-Reliance: "Nothing is at last sacred but the integrity of your own mind." Page 178.

13.  Jensen, Beaulieu, and Neck (2018). “The Self-Action Leadership Model: A Qualitative, Nomological Expansion of Self-Leadership Theory Rooted in Action Research.” Journal of Leadership and Management. 11(2018). Pgs. 10-30. ISSN: 2391-6087. Page 23.

Freedom Focused

 

Chapter 6

Freedom Focused 

This Life Leadership textbook seeks to ignite the cultural championing of personal freedom.

The freedom I speak of is not freedom from hardship and responsibility, nor is it the liberty to simply do as you please. The kind of freedom I'm talking about is the freedom to become all you are capable of becoming.

And the good news is that YOU are capable of becoming a fully actualized human being in possession of unlimited opportunities for personal growth and productive contribution.

I therefore speak of the freedom to move forward confidently in your life and career, to conquer—or at very least to better manage—your flaws, and to become happy, successful, and prosperous (financially and otherwise). 

What kind of freedom do you seek?

        Freedom from?

                Or Freedom to?  (1)

How you answer this question throughout your life will largely determine the extent of your happiness, freedom, growth, success, and peace of mind. My invitation to you, therefore, is to join us at Freedom Focused and become focused on freedom, now and forever.  

Many people erroneously view freedom as a means of escaping duty and responsibility—the so-called right to do whatever you want. In truth, life has indeed granted you the liberty to think about, say, and do as you please. Life does not, however, exonerate you from the natural consequences of your choices.

Because you cannot control consequences—such is the purview of Universal Laws—doing whatever you please may bring short-term benefits and pleasure, but predictably ends in long-term pain, failure, misery, and penury of all kinds. 

Everyone has the right to make poor choices. But no one has the power to circumvent or evade the accompanying long-term consequences, which are always negative and painful.

In other words: what goes around really does come back around. Karma is a real phenomenon. And in the end, you really do reap what you sow. 

"As you sow, so shall ye reap."

—Law of the Harvest

"What goes around comes around."

—Old proverb

True freedom, therefore, must always be earned; and its attainment can only be secured by paying the price set by Universal Laws—laws that are not subject to human negotiation or whimsical caprice.

Unfortunately, people all-too-often seek after a pseudo sort of freedom—the freedom from toil, from trouble, from challenges, and from self-reliance. However, individuals interested in personal and professional growth—in other words, SELF-ACTION LEADERS—seek after the freedom to learn, to work, to strive, to persist, to try again, to pursue opportunities, to transcend obstacles, to overcome weaknesses, to become self-reliant, and to seek continually after "Constant and Never-Ending Improvement" (CANI) (2) in the pursuit of growth, happiness, success, fulfillment, and inner peace.

The Price of Liberty

Arlington National Cemetery, Virginia

As mentioned in the previous chapter, individual liberty is a prerequisite to personal freedom. Moreover, just as the acquisition of personal or professional freedom comes with a price—and sometimes a high price—individual liberty also comes with a price (and often a high price as well). 

I have had the privilege of walking peacefully amongst the legions of graves in some of my nation's largest military cemeteries. From Arlington National Cemetery in northern Virginia and Sam Houston National Cemetery in San Antonio Texas, to Marietta National Cemetery in North Georgia, and the National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific in Honolulu, Hawaii's Punchbowl Crater. 

USS Arizona Memorial
Pearl Harbor; Honolulu, HI, USA

These opportunities have afforded me the privilege to reverently and thoughtfully meander past tens of thousands of headstones marking a final resting place for those who gave their lives that [my] nation [and other nations] might live (3) and enjoy the individual rights that liberty provides.

When I consider the heavy price in blood, life, property, resources, and treasure expended to maintain my country's safety, liberty, and prosperity (and other nations my country has defended and fought alongside) over the past 250 years, my soul is subdued and my heart is filled with thanksgiving. 

Liberty is not free!

It comes with a price—usually a high price that in some instances includes the ultimate sacrifice of human life itself.

The late Robert Wai of Honolulu, Hawaii, age 95 at

the time this photo was taken in 2014. Wai is a World

War II U.S. Army combat veteran who helped liberate

the Philippines from the Japanese Empire in 1944.

On the wall is a picture of his brother, Francis Wai,

who died fighting in the Pacific Theater in 1944.

On June 21, 2000, U.S. President Bill Clinton

posthumously presented Francis with the prestigious

Medal of Honor. Robert received the award in Francis's

place. Click HERE to learn more about Francis's heroic

actions that led to this special recognition. 

I will always admire, venerate, and seek to honor the men and women who were willing to pay whatever price liberty has demanded throughout human history. As their courageous lives—and sometimes deaths—illustrate, the price of liberty is high and hard to pay. Yet securing it for oneself and one's family and fellow citizens is priceless because of the opportunity it affords us to pursue something even greater than individual liberty—namely, PERSONAL FREEDOM.

The commitment and courage of these men and women is one of the many things that fuels my patriotism for my country. It also makes me feel connected to and proud of other countries who have likewise sacrificed blood, life, and treasure on the altars of liberty, freedom, and the pure principles upon which they rest.

Such pride and patriotism remind me of the rich reverberations and righteous refrains of Lieutenant Colonel John McRae's famous poem, In Flanders Fields. McCrae's three stanza masterpiece serves a dual purpose. 

It begins as a tribute to those who had already given their "last full measure of devotion" (4) in the muddy and bloody trenches of the Great War. It ends with a challenge to those who lived on to fight another day.  

In Flanders Fields

In Flanders fields the poppies blow
Between the crosses, row on row,

That mark our place; and in the sky
The larks, still bravely singing, fly
Scarce head amid the guns below.

We are the Dead.  Short days ago
We lived, felt dawn, saw sunset glow,
Loved and were loved, and now we lie
               In Flanders fields.

Take up our quarrel with the foe;
To you from failing hands we throw
The torch; be yours to hold it high.
If ye break faith with us who die
We shall not sleep, though poppies grow
               In Flanders fields. (5)

Poppies in November

The Red Poppy
Worn in the month of November
to commemorate the service and
sacrifice of Allied military veterans.

Each November, citizens of Allied Countries all over the world (i.e. France, Great Britain, Canada, Australia, the United States, et al.) pin red poppies to their shirt, blouse, jacket, or coat in remembrance of those who lived and/or died fighting to uphold individual liberties and promote personal freedoms. 

These special days provide us with vital points of remembrance and serve as important symbols of recommitment to the values of liberty and freedom that all fair and just-minded persons and societies embrace.  

If tyranny is the foe of liberty, then who, or what, is the enemy of freedom? There are many answers to this question. These answers include: inertia (idleness or laziness), discouragement, deceit, myopia, temptation, giving up short of a worthy goal, and ignorance of—or disobedience towards—True Principles rooted in Universal Laws. 

At Freedom Focused, our individual and collective aim is to rise up and fight against these enemies of freedom until they are defeated.  

The Price of Freedom

Freedom, like liberty, also comes with a price that is often heavy and hard. Such price tags include significant investments of time, effort, diligence, work, sacrifice, determination, persistence, consistence, and patience. Meeting such exacting demands can sometimes feel overwhelming. But if you are willing to pay the price that freedom requires, you will eventually be compensated manyfold for your noble desires and due diligence. 

Thus, being Freedom Focused pays big-time over time. 

While you may not receive your "paychecks" as soon or as often as you would like, paydays always come eventually if you are willing to pay the price to earn them; and in many cases, the long-term compensations exponentially surpass whatever prices you had to pay to accrue them. 

Like liberty, personal freedom is also susceptible to invasions and attacks from forces both external and internal. Like your virtue, your freedom must be willingly upheld, dutifully defended, and vigilantly protected, or you will most assuredly lose hold of it eventually.

At Freedom Focused, we believe that only life itself can compare to the value and importance of individual liberties and personal freedoms. And as Viktor Frankl and American POWs so compellingly illustrated in transcending the horrors of Auschwitz and the Hanoi Hilton, freedom is even more vital and valuable than liberty alone.

I seek after and cherish FREEDOM beyond anything else in my life, including liberty. Indeed, I would rather be a free man unjustly placed behind bars than a man at liberty who has relegated his freedom to the tyrannical forces of existential entropy, social pressures, and temptation.

Indeed... 

        FREEDOM is virtually everything to me.

It is my life's most salient and single-minded value and focus. It is also my greatest personal and professional quest. It is the reason I named my company, Freedom Focused.

Freedom Focused

I am Freedom Focused—

Focused, that is, on Freedom.

Freedom from tyrants,

And evil and terror,

Freedom from bias, 

Injustice and error,

But most of all...

Freedom from myself,

And the devil within—

A fiend far more fearsome

Than the author of sin.

Freedom in all its glorious majesty

And liberating bliss

Will be mine forever

If I'll remember this:

Universal Laws exist and govern

Outside of all human opinion or arbitration,

And Serendipity

Has my back and yours—

As long as we do our part.

Therefore:

I truly

   Am

      Sovereign

And by extension—

FREE—

To be

The kind of Man

I want to be

In this life,

And throughout 

Eternity.

I am, therefore, Freedom Focused—

Focused, that is, on 

Freedom—

Now,

   Tomorrow,

       &

Forever.   

—Dr. JJ

Freedom is Not Free

Because human beings are more or less free to choose their thoughts, speech, and actions, individual liberty is a gift that everyone enjoys.  (6)  Freedom, on the other hand, is typically not free; it must be earned over time by (ironically) voluntarily submitting your will before the undeviating and uncompromising edicts of True Principles rooted in Universal Laws. 

Put another way, freedom is earned as a by-product of willingly restricting your own liberty in disciplined and strategic ways. It's a paradox; but like most paradoxes, it's true! In the words of the great historian, Will Durant: The first condition of freedom is its limitation; make it absolute and it dies in chaos.  (7) 

"The first condition of freedom is its limitation;

make it absolute and it dies in chaos."

—Will Durant

Henry David Thoreau once remarked that: In the long run, men only hit what they aim at.  (9)

"In the long run, [you] only hit what [you] aim at."

—Henry David Thoreau

Self-Action Leaders aim for FREEDOM—today, tomorrow, and forever. 

        Not freedom from exertion and struggle, but freedom to transcend self and other obstacles on a never-ending journey of personal growth.

Are YOU Freedom Focused?

    

SAL Mantra

I Am Freedom Focused

In Your Journal

• What service or sacrifices have your parents, grandparents, or other ancestors offered up on behalf of your country or homeland in the past?

• What service or sacrifices would you be willing to make to defend—or expand upon—the liberties your country or homeland presently affords you?

• Perhaps you or your ancestors have been unfairly treated, persecuted, or even enslaved or murdered by your country or homeland in the past, causing you to be suspicious of its moral compass and intentions in the present. If this is the case, what might you do to bring about a healing of past wounds and ensure a better life for you and your descendants in the future?

—Dr. JJ

Wednesday, January 31, 2024

Palm Beach Gardens, Florida, USA

Author's Note: This is the 372nd Blog Post Published by Freedom Focused LLC since November 2013 and the 184th consecutive weekly blog published since August 31, 2020.   

Click HERE for a compete listing of the other 371 FF Blog Articles 

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Click HERE for a complete listing of Freedom Focused SAL POEMS   

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Click HERE for a complete listing of Self-Action Leadership Articles

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.........................

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Chapter 6 Notes

1).  I was first introduced to this concept by Felicia Cockrell, a friend of mine, who was introduced to it by a friend of hers. Others have written on the subject, as illustrated by related quotes and citations accessible in BOOK the SIXTH, Chapter 8, where Felicia's remarkable SAL story is chronicled. 

2).  Robbins, T. (1991). Awaken the Giant Within: How to Take Immediate Control of Your Mental, Emotional, Physical, and Financial Destiny! New York, NY: Free Press. Pages 261, 517, 524.    

3).  From Abraham Lincoln's Gettysburg Address, delivered 19 November, 1863, in Gettysburg, Pennsylvania, USA.  

4).  Ibid.

5).  McCrae, J., in Cook, R.J. (1920). 101 Famous Poems: With a Prose Supplement. Chicago, IL: The Cable Company. Page 11. Google Books version.

6).  Communal liberty, however, is not always free, as evinced by the countless wars fought to preserve, defend, and protect it. 

7).  Durant, W. (1968). The Lessons of History. New York, NY: Simon & Schuster Paperbacks. Page 68.