When I was a little younger I had a dog I liked. However, whenever I poked at him a certain way, he would try and bite me. At times, I would be angry at him for doing this and would try to teach him not to bit me when I did this. I don’t have to tell you that it never worked, he would continue to try and bit me whenever I poked him, no matter what I did.
The point behind this little anecdote is to demonstrate a simple matter of cause an effect. I would try to poke him, he would try and bite me. Common sense would dictate that if I didn’t want to get bitten, I shouldn’t poke him. But you’d be surprised at how often people like to poke at things.
Sometimes it is wasted effort to try and change your environment, to change the effect opposite your cause. It’s either too much effort, to0 much to be lost or outright futile. If you find yourself constantly fighting battles you know you will lose, maybe it’s time to change your strategy.
The Battle of Waterloo by William Sadler II
When dealing with cause and effect, there is always a positive to accompany the negative; a way to turn your weakness into a strength. The difference between a strategist and the powerless is the ability to recognize the inherit benefits. Just knowing what will happen can be a positive. Even with my dog, if I were a particularly deviant child I could have convinced somebody I didn’t like to poke my dog, having them bitten.
Part of what sparked me to write this was a comment written on the previous article by Dear Writer fairykarma:
…I’ve always suspected that one had to play dirty to some extent to get ahead. But I always played it safe and thought it best to just rely on my own merit. But recently, I’ve gradually been subscribing to what you’re saying. I find that just changing my wardrobe, my persona, gaining a few pounds of muscle, and buying a new sporty looking car got me much more attention than all the hours I’ve spend in the library thinking that my intellect would get me the attention I needed. Even my own parents started treating me positively. It was really sad.
Nevertheless, this is a new life I’m not completely satisfied in. It was just too easy and I would really like to find a place where people appreciate my actual merit rather than the show I put on for them. I just can’t believe this mentality infiltrates almost every institution out there.
If one were to strip the emotional context, reading between the lines we could find a lesson in this. There is a simple cause and effect at action that tells us “changing my wardrobe, my persona, gaining a few pounds of muscle, and buying a new sporty looking car” is the cause, and the resultant effect would be “got me much more attention”. Or, inductively, “Putting effort into appearances increases social skills”. Under this light it becomes a simple rule we cannot change. Our Dear Writer took the correct course of action in altering the strategy, not futilely trying to change the world we live in.
I am, however, slightly disappointed by the mindset. By thinking the ease of this action means it has no merit is a pitfall. While others may possibly be content to live in the relative shallowness of appearances, our Dear Writer is aware of the power it brings him. His obvious intelligence allows him to bend circumstances to his will by manipulating the simple cause and effect underlying. I encourage all of you reading to try to look beyond the inherit negative presented and to seek out the positive in the context of our Dear Writer’s situation.
You must be dispassionate. Analyze every situation and find the hidden benefits. In a displeasing situation you must not react with emotion, as it will cloud your judgment. Just as the expression of anger would not tame a dog, the expression of outrage will not make the world less cruel. Likewise, refusing to take the correct action will typically not make you a martyr.
We have stumbled upon one of the reasons behind this site. I aim to explore the tools and techniques to further your goals in the current environment. Do not try to assign moral terms such as “good” or “evil” to what I write. Instead try to look at them as an attempt to document reality. I have hopefully imparted with you the perspective to seek out advantage from disadvantage, the awareness to know when best to yield over taking action and given you an insight into the nature of strategy. Do not refuse to look out of disgust, learn to look without prejudice. We all incorporate strategy, even those who dismiss it are employing a strategy. Indeed, the very act of accusing the world of lacking merit is a tactic. There are simply those who do it well, and those who do it poorly.
There is one last thing. While I have talked entirely of when recognize an unwinnable situation, there is the possibility that with more power your ability to influence a situation will change, your entire goal could even be to change a situation. But when you lack the power, the only way to play the game is to use what you have at the moment. Bid your time and wait patiently, your opportunity will come.
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