Tolerance (with audio)
Recently, a good friend of mine admitted that he was gay. Well he didn’t actually admit it outright, although he did clearly hint at it openly and jokingly. It was rather refreshing to see him breaking down some social barriers that surround us at varying heights throughout our lives. What’s amazing is I recall thinking, and have always felt, “whatever”! I love the guy and hope that he is a part of my life until the end. That message was crystal clear, unbiased, coming directly from my soul…
So it started me thinking about the whole concept of tolerance and bias in our society and what holds many people back from being who they truly are. Quite often it’s what other people think, what have they have taught us to believe, and most importantly, what they say…the indelible, powerful, influence of words.
What I’ve come to realize is many times the things that come out of my own mouth are not necessarily what I truly believe deep down inside. There is no connection to my core, no pipeline to my soul. They are a collection of other people’s perspectives and opinions that appeared during a time when a perspective was needed and have hung around ever since. After a while, it has become a part of my make-up and ultimately starts to flow out of my mouth the next time that topic comes up in conversation. And so it goes…
What I have found helpful is to examine areas of my life where I have strong opinions and a rigid viewpoint. Where did it come from and when did it begin? When I start to look closer, many times I will find some old programming still clunking away. It’s not who I am or how I truly feel if I stop to think about it, just something I picked up along the way and accepted by listening to someone else…handed down through the generations.
Or it may be an area of my business where I’ve come to see my actions indicate a belief about a certain industry, type of person, or part of our business process. When I really think about that core belief, I realize I don’t even agree with it–it’s simply a thought that has taken hold as a result of an experience.
So my challenge is to pick an area where you may express strong opinions or potentially judge others and ask yourself – where did this come from and have I ever really examined why I feel this way? Do I truly believe this? What would it be like if you simply said “whatever” in lieu of judgment? Post one of your revelations, and cast some light on it. Perhaps it’s time for new perspective, one that is unbiased…one that comes from within.
Be Free!
Ken Budka
Training Coordinator
