For anyone who has their youth still and their natural talents whether they be strength, intelligence, looks, whatever you have, I have a message to all of you: Build something.
It doesn't matter what your natural talent, it will fade.
In our superficial world everyone knows about looks, that eventually you're not a hot young thing anymore, but eventually your looks fade, and you better hope you built something because if you didn't then you won't have anything.
If you're intelligent, let me warn you: As you get older your mind slows down. You will hit a peak, and after that you'll have to work a little harder every year, you'll be a little dimmer every year, you'll have to fight to remember that fact a little more every year, and eventually your intelligence will fade and you better hope you built something because if you didn't you won't have anything.
If you're strong, let me warn you: As you get older, your body will lose its strength. You will be stronger than anyone but as time goes on you won't be able to keep up with the exercise, you won't be able to work hard enough, and some brat will come up behind you and overwhelm you, and you better hope you build something because if you didn't you won't have anything.
Over the years you can build wisdom, a body of knowledge and experience that doesn't rely on pure intelligence. You can build relationships, bonds with other people that don't rely on looks. You can build gravitas, the ability to get people's attention without relying on strength. You can build the next generation, a chance to live on in what you impart upon those who come after you. You can even build resources, a bunch of stuff so you don't need to live hand to mouth. There's many more ways you can build something, but it doesn't really matter as much as just building something.
We're seeing it right now, a generation that was never told tomorrow would come, who was always told they were the future without every being told that someday that future would come and you better be ready, who was never told there would be consequences to squandering their gifts. They get older, their natural gifts fade, they never built anything, and they panic and they get really angry.
When I was young and starting my career, I was told all the time "the baby boomers will be retiring soon, and then there's going to be a bunch of jobs out there!" -- It was always a thing that was coming, a thing that was on its way, and there were people who complained that they hadn't retired yet. Well, that day has arrived, and there's all kinds of jobs for someone who has built something -- but most people haven't built any of it! It doesn't matter if the boomers retire for these people because those people aren't in any position to be hired for these jobs. Doesn't matter the opportunity because they never built anything.
Young men who aren't successful have taken to hating themselves and claiming they'll never accomplish anything. They call themselves "Incel", a portmanteau of Involuntary Celibate. These people have the opposite problem: They don't realize that they can build something. Often they've been beaten down and told they can't. They've been told that they'll always be losers and that they shouldn't even try to be anything but. This is a tragedy, because we all have the potential to build something. Thinking that we will always be what we are now is a bad thing for the gifted, but it's also a bad thing for the ungifted. If you put in the effort, you can build something even if you feel like you're useless today.
Humans have had a large number of evolutionary advantages over the millennia. Today we're the smartest creature on the planet, we have uniquely powerful language skills, we are uniquely powerful tool users, but our first advantage evolved on the savanna. The reason we're hairless apes is that our bodies are covered in sweat glands, and our entire body is an endurance machine. Our upright locomotion, the way our hips are set up, the way we can sway our arms, it's all set up so we are capable of running longer than most any other creature. We were able to chase down prey until it became exhausted and we could catch up and get a meal. That was the first step on our way to our current situation. That endurance persists in our psyche. Most creatures on earth might plan ahead for a season, possibly a year. Humans can plan ahead decades, and they can stick with those plans for those decades. It's that ability to plan ahead so far, and to work for years to achieve a master plan that lets us have the most incredible lifestyle of any creature, even compared to other reasonably intelligent creatures.
You're a human, so act like it. Plan ahead, follow your plan, and build something. If you are like the mosquito and think only for the moment, if you're like the bird and plan only for the season, then you're going to wake up one day and realize you've lost everything you had and you can't get it back.
It doesn't matter what your natural talent, it will fade.
In our superficial world everyone knows about looks, that eventually you're not a hot young thing anymore, but eventually your looks fade, and you better hope you built something because if you didn't then you won't have anything.
If you're intelligent, let me warn you: As you get older your mind slows down. You will hit a peak, and after that you'll have to work a little harder every year, you'll be a little dimmer every year, you'll have to fight to remember that fact a little more every year, and eventually your intelligence will fade and you better hope you built something because if you didn't you won't have anything.
If you're strong, let me warn you: As you get older, your body will lose its strength. You will be stronger than anyone but as time goes on you won't be able to keep up with the exercise, you won't be able to work hard enough, and some brat will come up behind you and overwhelm you, and you better hope you build something because if you didn't you won't have anything.
Over the years you can build wisdom, a body of knowledge and experience that doesn't rely on pure intelligence. You can build relationships, bonds with other people that don't rely on looks. You can build gravitas, the ability to get people's attention without relying on strength. You can build the next generation, a chance to live on in what you impart upon those who come after you. You can even build resources, a bunch of stuff so you don't need to live hand to mouth. There's many more ways you can build something, but it doesn't really matter as much as just building something.
We're seeing it right now, a generation that was never told tomorrow would come, who was always told they were the future without every being told that someday that future would come and you better be ready, who was never told there would be consequences to squandering their gifts. They get older, their natural gifts fade, they never built anything, and they panic and they get really angry.
When I was young and starting my career, I was told all the time "the baby boomers will be retiring soon, and then there's going to be a bunch of jobs out there!" -- It was always a thing that was coming, a thing that was on its way, and there were people who complained that they hadn't retired yet. Well, that day has arrived, and there's all kinds of jobs for someone who has built something -- but most people haven't built any of it! It doesn't matter if the boomers retire for these people because those people aren't in any position to be hired for these jobs. Doesn't matter the opportunity because they never built anything.
Young men who aren't successful have taken to hating themselves and claiming they'll never accomplish anything. They call themselves "Incel", a portmanteau of Involuntary Celibate. These people have the opposite problem: They don't realize that they can build something. Often they've been beaten down and told they can't. They've been told that they'll always be losers and that they shouldn't even try to be anything but. This is a tragedy, because we all have the potential to build something. Thinking that we will always be what we are now is a bad thing for the gifted, but it's also a bad thing for the ungifted. If you put in the effort, you can build something even if you feel like you're useless today.
Humans have had a large number of evolutionary advantages over the millennia. Today we're the smartest creature on the planet, we have uniquely powerful language skills, we are uniquely powerful tool users, but our first advantage evolved on the savanna. The reason we're hairless apes is that our bodies are covered in sweat glands, and our entire body is an endurance machine. Our upright locomotion, the way our hips are set up, the way we can sway our arms, it's all set up so we are capable of running longer than most any other creature. We were able to chase down prey until it became exhausted and we could catch up and get a meal. That was the first step on our way to our current situation. That endurance persists in our psyche. Most creatures on earth might plan ahead for a season, possibly a year. Humans can plan ahead decades, and they can stick with those plans for those decades. It's that ability to plan ahead so far, and to work for years to achieve a master plan that lets us have the most incredible lifestyle of any creature, even compared to other reasonably intelligent creatures.
You're a human, so act like it. Plan ahead, follow your plan, and build something. If you are like the mosquito and think only for the moment, if you're like the bird and plan only for the season, then you're going to wake up one day and realize you've lost everything you had and you can't get it back.
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