Why the “dark” stuff?

by Blair Warren

I was just asked why I focus on the “dark” side of life.  Do I really think the world is “defective”?  Do I think life is just a big cesspool of lying and deceit?

This is a great question and is one I’ve often struggled with myself.  Maybe I should just focus more on the positive and leave the negative stuff alone.  Maybe I should, but I can’t.  It’s just not me.  And while I could literally write 10,000 words trying to address this person’s question, for now, let me just offer this:

I do not “focus” on the dark side of life.  I simply incorporate it - along with the “good stuff” - into my work.  It is often said that you should only focus on the positive and ignore the negative and that’s great advice.  But for some people, myself included, it is only part of the equation.  No matter how positive my thoughts, the dark stuff of life always finds a way of creeping up on me and demanding that I address it.

How about you?

What do you do when people lie to you?  When they betray your trust?  When they let you down?

Do you pretend it never happened?  Do you let it destroy your faith in others?  Do you let it drag you down to their level?

These are important questions because these things will happen - even to good people.  Maybe even, especially to good people.  The only question is, how will we deal with them when they do.

So yes, I am convinced that honest, trustworthy people can succeed in today’s world but not without encountering their share of dishonest, untrustworthy people.  The real trick isn’t to pretend these people don’t exist; the trick is to acknowledge their existence and deal with them in such a way that we don’t become like them.  And it is a trick that has no final answer and requires us to look in places most people would rather not go.

Posted on Thursday, July 07, 2005 at 09:53 AM

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