‘Don’t be a tall poppy’
‘Quit being such a show-off’
‘So you think you’re so smart?’
Have you heard any of these before? Maybe they were directed towards you. Maybe you might have said them to someone else. But why do people feel a need to say these kinds of things?
Having grown up in Malaysia and living the past few years in NZ, I can say that modesty is seen as a virtue, and pride as a sin in these parts of the world, and it might be the case in where you come from as well. Because of that, we prize modesty and we try our best to not stand out, to not work too hard and to brush off any suggestions that we may be ‘trying’ for something better.
In NZ we call it the ‘Tall poppy syndrome’ – the tall poppies stand up above the rest, and then they get cut down to size.
In Malaysia we have a similar saying for it:
‘Don’t be the chicken that lays a single egg and crows about it to the whole village,’
It’s a little wordier than ‘Tall Poppy’, but you get the gist of it. It’s all about belittling your achievements and doing your best not to stand out.
Well I say screw that.
Be a tall poppy, stand out above the rest and be proud of your achievements. Be THAT chicken, take pride in the quality of your eggs.
Modesty is great – it keeps our ego in check and it gives us a healthy amount of self-doubt that spurs us to constantly improve ourselves. But that being said, pride should not be seen as a sin either.
If you have worked hard to get where you are, if you have important information to share and if you believe that you have a product/service that can benefit others – you owe it to yourself AND to your community to get out there and talk about it! Be proud of what you have accomplished.
All too often we see small minded people try to pull down anyone that shows a modicum of success. Jealousy bares its green-tinted fangs against the successes of others, doing its best to tell others to stop trying so hard, stop wasting their time and stop trying to be better than others.
Don’t be that person. Celebrate the achievements of others and celebrate the achievements that you have made as well. If you have the time to moan and groan about what other people are doing then you have the time to focus instead on what you can do to better yourself.
We need to encourage that entrepreneurial spirit in our communities. As people start losing their jobs in the global recession, we need to build each other up, not tear each other down. If someone has an idea for a business/product/service – listen to them, encourage them and give them positive feedback. Avoid using words like:
‘That’ll never work,’
‘Other people have done that – why bother?’
‘You’re being stupid,’
Instead, use words like
‘Cool idea! How will you make it work?’
‘That seems to be a popular idea, other people are doing it – what makes your idea different?’
‘That sounds really smart! I wish I thought of that!’
Our ability to beat this recession relies not only on our business acumen but also on our ability to support each other and grow stronger together.
So yeah,
Be a tall poppy. Don’t let the petty words of others cut you down.
Stand tall. Stand proud. Stay strong and most of all:
STAY POSITIVE
Shivan
admin