Self Help Our Ship Five

There was an adorable little email sent to me a few days ago quoting from a book by noted self help guru John C. Maxwell.

It was about the power of belief and contained such circular logical gems like "If you believe you can't, then you can't."

Which is just amazingly true.

John C. Maxwell knows his shit.

Especially when you consider that its the same reason Luke Skywalker couldn't use the force to lift his X-Wing fighter out of the swamps of Dagobah.

Maxwell must be an "Empire Strikes Back" fan too.

There is no way in hell you're gonna lift your X-Wing fighter out of the swamp if you don't believe you can.

I promise.

And you have to give John C. Maxwell some serious props for sheer tenacity. The dude has sold millions of books filled the same bumper sticker twaddle. Millions. With an "M"

And don't get me wrong.

I have nothing against self help books. I know people who write them. Good ones. Practical ones. The kind of self help books that fill you with esteem and pack you an extra sandwich for your journey.

John C. Maxwell doesn't pack sandwiches.

He just points to dirt and tells you not to drink it.

Then condescendingly makes you feel bad for being thirsty.

I just have such a problem using the term "Belief" in the first place. "Belief" is a dead end. It's a justification for ignorance, and functionally ends the debate.

And I'm not saying all belief is bad. Go ahead and believe in the Ten Commandments and that menstration is God's punishment for eating from the tree of knowledge. I'll just sit over in this room glad that you're not my gynecologist.

But here's the thing . . . Why not replace the word "Belief" with the word "Confidence"?

Sure, I can say that I believe the sky is blue.

But in actuality, I have confidence the sky is blue because I have compared the color to other colors and blue is the mutually agreed upon word to describe that color.

Luke failed because he didn't believe?

Or did he fail because he had nothing to compare the experience to and therefore had no confidence that it could be done?

Self help is about confidence. It's not about belief. You can believe all you want that flapping your arms fast enough is gonna help you fly.

I have confidence its not.

Self help is about removing obstacles. Clearing your head. Giving you a few things to try and possibly a Bob Fett bandaid for when you fall and scrape your knee.

Self Help is about identifying all the things that strip you of your worth and make those first few steps feel just a little more possible than they were yesterday.

The obstacles are all different. Visions, Missions, Challenges, and dreams.

So for all the obstacles out there, here (I write with confidence) is a self help five, to give you a little confidence, and maybe start you on your way.


But I believe I'm not smart?
There were two, count em, two Presidents who couldn't pronounce NUCLEAR.

But I believe I'm not Talented!
Jackson Pollack, William Shatner, Anthony Keidis.

But I believe I'm not sexy!
If there is anyone willing to have sex with you . . . you're sexy!

But I believe I'm not capable!
Find someone who is and make friends.

But I believe I'm not ready!
Probably not. But no one ever is.

Believe me.