CLARIFY YOUR INTENTIONS

“Let all your efforts be directed to something, let it keep that end in view. It’s not activity that disturbs people, but false conceptions of things that drive them mad.”

—SENECA, ON TRANQUILITY OF MIND, 12.5

Law 29 of The 48 Laws of Power is: Plan All The Way To The End. Robert Greene writes, “By planning to the end you will not be overwhelmed by circumstances and you will know when to stop. Gently guide fortune and help determine the future by thinking far ahead.”

The second habit in The 7Habits of Highly Effective People is: begin with an end in mind.

Having an end in mind is no guarantee that you’ll reach it no Stoic would tolerate that assumption—but not having an end in mind is a guarantee you won’t. To the Stoics, false conceptions  are responsible not just for disturbances in the soul but for chaotic and dysfunctional lives and operations. When your efforts are not directed at a cause or a purpose, how will you know what to do day in and day out? How will you know what to say no to and what to say yes to? How will you know when you’ve had enough, when you’ve reached your goal, when you’ve gotten off track, if you’ve never defined what those things are?

The answer is that you cannot. And so you are driven into failure or worse, into madness by the oblivion of directionlessness.

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Name without fame is like a fire without flame

Always wondered why some people make controversial statements in public, wear unconventional dresses, pick up a fight uncalled for..

The air is cleared by a lesson from 48 laws of power by Robert Greene..

“Draw attention to yourself by creating an unforgettable, even controversial image. Court scandal. Do anything to make yourself seem larger than life and shine more brightly than those around you. Make no distinction between kinds of attention — notoriety of any sort will bring you power. Better to be slandered and attacked than ignored.”

As someone appropriately quoted -  “Remember all publicity is good publicity, as long as they spell your name right” 

A wasp, named Pin Tail, was long inquest of some deed that would make him forever famous. So one day he entered the king's palace and stung the little prince, who was in bed. The prince awoke with loud cries. The king and his courtiers rushed in to see what had happened. The prince was yelling, as the wasp stung him again and again. The courtiers tried to catch the wasp, and each was stung. The entire royal household rushed in to the room; the news soon spread and people flocked to the palace. The city was in an uproar, with all business suspended. Said the wasp to itself, before it expired from its efforts, "A name without fame is like a fire without flame. There is nothing like attracting notice, at any cost."

An actor, who steps into this brilliant light, attained a heightened presence. All eyes are on him. There is room for only one actor, at a time, in the limelight's narrow beam; do whatever it takes to make yourself its focus. Make your gestures so large, amusing and scandalous that the light stays on you, while toe other actors stay in the shadows.

Burning more brightly than those around you is a skill with which no one is born. You must learn to attract attention. At the start of your career, you must attach your name and reputation to a quality, an image, that sets you apart from other people. This image can be something like a characteristic style of dress, or as a personality quirk that amuses people and gets talked about. Once the image is established, you have an appearance, a place in the sky for your star.

Court Attention At All Costs….

Source:  “The 48 Laws Of Power" by Robert Greene 

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