Jesse Steele

Sometimes we miss the bus. Care and charm prevent many a diplomacy upset. But, no falling-out falls out without a buildup of grievances. Once those grievances pile up, it’s hard to make up for what we’ve lost. The bus leaves and we wake up too late to catch it.

A missed bus isn’t the end of the world. Life carries on and so must we, having learned valuable lessons. We have to bear the fallout of our piled-up negligence and keep from becoming too toxic to pay bills. Then we learn the biggest lesson in the pile: Attitude is altitude.  · · · →

Keeping a secret could mean that you can’t vindicate yourself. There might be a very good reason why you do what you do, but to tell that reason might hurt someone else. So, doing the right thing might require the appearance of doing the wrong thing.

The lesson to learn from this isn’t about self-sacrifice; it’s about not being quick to judge. Taking the hit for others is about understanding oneself. Not judging others for taking a hit is about understanding others. So, to be willing to take the hit for others first requires not judging others—and that’s harder.  · · · →

We can’t win with everyone. And, maybe we shouldn’t try anyway.

People make their own choices, just how you make yours. Everyone has a dream of changing the world and convincing stupid people to stop being stupid. Almost no one has a dream of changing themselves and convincing themselves to stop being stupid. You could be part of the solution, just be a little more selfish with your dreams for change and make those dreams a lot more about yourself.

People have to fail sometimes, other times they need our help. We’ll know what to do if we change first.  · · · →

Missiles travel. You shoot them in one place and they land in another. For the simple-minded, this can be a difficult concept to grasp. It takes an attention span, the mental framework called “object permanence”, and dare I say a conscience. Those who succumb to the seduction of things being out of mind if they are out of sight won’t grasp the concept of missiles because they can’t believe in the existence of what they can’t see right in front of them.

The application is broad—safety, danger, diplomacy, mutual assured destruction, distance, aim. Just be aware that missiles fly.  · · · →