Hard Times

“Hard times create strong men. Strong men create good times. Good times create weak men. And, weak men create hard times.” – G. Michael Hopf

Michael puts it best with Hard Times making Hard Men…. And Woman…. And however else you identify. Adversity if emotionally managed correctly can strengthen you.

Mr. Chow from the Hangover Trilogy puts it anther way that’s a bit more fun: “Oh, you are having a bad day. Did you die?
What’s the matter, you never do blow before? Sometimes your heart stop, it start up again. Read a book.”

As much as I wouldn’t recommend the “blow” part Mr. Chow makes a compelling point. If you didn’t die then what’s next for you sorrow or celebration. Depending on the situation of course; are you going to survive and think why it happened to you or charge forward with the seal of survival tattooed on your character.

My mother asked me the other day…. Mom: “Do you think pain becomes lesser as you experience more or does it stay the same?” This is a powerful question. I told her I don’t think the pain changes I think you do.

After experiencing your peak level of pain all other incidences below that become no big deal.

Think of it this way…. A child gets a paper cut and will scream like there has been shanked in prison. That child grows up saddles a skateboard and spends its teen years with road rash daily. And the teen will pop back up after eating it hard, shake off the pain and keep trying til that trick is landed.

So let’s go back to the quote at the top.

“Hard Times Make Hard Men.” A diamond is forged in heat and pressure and so is an iron will.

“Strong Men Create Good Times.” Have you ever met the people who work past their specified hours to be sure they finish a job right. That is the spirit that builds cultures and sustains life styles.

“Good Times Make Weak Men.” There is always a trade off. If anything a hard time reveals where everyone needs to improve. Especially those not quite strong enough. This is why doing something that sucks daily to build up your emotions like a well tuned immune system.

*Read Something That Sucks for Context*

“And, Weak Mean Create Hard Times.” You are either part of the solution or part of the problem. Take during the current crisis of coronavirus. There are those who seek attention more than the safety of loved ones. These people are those who disturb a balance and often for vanity.

How you choose to live your life is definitely your choice. I personally want to be the Hard Man someone can rely on for whats needed. I’m not perfect and no one is. Thats a perk of humanity we mess up. Once you fall you pick yourself up again. Spirit and grit are the secret ingredients.

This quote is a call to action.

It highlights the people who work hard because they are built that way. Not everyone has to be a work horse to be a hardened individual.

This quote demands action for your potential to be the person who charges forth on what they yield passion for.

These Hardened Folk are the pillars of a society.

What are you made of? Are you the individual who can work twelve hours a day without complaint because you know that you are the one that needs to bring the “bacon” home? Are you the person who to meet a deadline stays up sacrificing their sleep so that their art is released on time?

I choose to be both and as much as I may falter from time to time it doesn’t ever mean I stop trying and getting up.

If you are a work horse then be the one who will always clock in on time to be sure that the things needed are supplied.

If you are an artist and your work is entertainment then finish that art on its dead line so that your audience waiting to read, listen or watch can find peace at the time they need it.

If you are a guardian and your job is to raise a child, pet or protect a loved one then dispute how you feel supply the support you have promised.

If you are a leader then lead with confidence. Mark your life with the signature of proud flow and show others that it is possible to push forward when it is hard.

If you don’t know where you belong then fake it. Find yourself one of these masks and practice what it is like to be one of these. I promise as long as you play the part and try to learn the art of improvement over time it will become who you truly are. Faking it is just practice while borrowing someone else’s blue print.

Take life by the horns and wrestle it to the ground letting it know you are here to win.