The Zen of Success – Dignity
I think it can be said that dignity or self-respect is more important than wealth to the Successful, and begins with the essential free will you have to create your own destiny, as well as from the respect you get from your family, your peers and from society.
The Successful are able to feed their family, earn enough to send their kids to school and provide them a safe home environment, earning the respect of the people in their community, and just as important, a connection to rest of us.
It has always been very easy to take dignity away from someone, but extremely difficult to give it to them. Over the past decade, as we have been able to connect the entire world, we have also elevated the importance of everyone in it, whether they are in your immediate life, a teacher in the next town or the next country, and in a world where everyone and everything is connected, the most important thing we can do is treat our fellows with dignity or respect.
The Successful understand that giving a person food or money might help them survive another day, but it most certainly doesn’t give them dignity they need to even begin contemplating the road to success.
The truly Successful, regardless of their own circumstances and wealth, understand and willingly accept the duty, not as an obligation, but an opportunity to help others by creating ways for people to become empowered to solve their own problems and by doing so, build a foundation of dignity that impacts a life, family, community, nation, and a world.
