Why people do what they do: Live by your code

Dear Blog Diary,

There was a farmer named Hank. He raises chickens. 

One day he walks out to the chicken coop, pulls out a chicken, and using his cleaver he chops off the chicken’s head. The other chickens panic in fear. 

The next day Hank walks out to the chicken coop, pulls out a chicken, and now he has a samurai sword. He draws the sword from the sheath, and cuts off the chicken's head. Again, the other chickens panic in fear. 

The next day, Hank comes out again and pulls a chicken. Now he has a butter knife. Knowing what the future has in store, the chicken is ironically calm. The chicken says to Hank…

“I get it. You’re hungry and you want something for dinner. I just want to ask, why? The others received a swift death. Why is it that I must endure a slow painful one?” Hank replies:

“Oh I’m vegetarian.”

There is some comfort knowing that the decisions we make come from a lifetime of past experience. We habitually do what we have always done until we are forced to change or we consciously choose to change. Sometimes those actions are just in our nature and other times they were developed at some point early on. We live by a code.

The question is, at what point is it ok to let go of that code?

This does not negate that this code was the proper medicine for the proper illness at the time. Time tested, whenever you met hardships, it worked. Maybe when relationships got hard, you closed down because you know what happens next. Better to protect yourself now than be heartbroken later.

Reality is, you don’t know what happens next. 

Maybe you worked corporate jobs, and what has made you successful is being even more cutthroat than every boss you’ve ever had. Let’s say you’re now the CEO. Well, the CEO doesn’t have the same problems as an associate, and those problems require different solutions. At that point, you're not cutthroat. You're a tyrant and an asshole, and if the war was to climb that ladder, then realize that you won. 

Empathy, kindness, passion, and compassion fueled by an insatiable curiosity. That's my code. I'm being serious when I ask, when should I let go of that code? 

Because some people just like chopping heads.

Best,

E

#ARTiculate