Is Truth an Outdated Concept?
How to maintain integrity in a world of lies, fake news and alternative facts.
“If it is not right, do not do it. If it is not true, do not say it.” — Marcus Aurelius
Is truth an outdated, naive concept? Are we living in a post-truth world of lies, fake news and alternative facts?
Has human progress been obliterated by a fusillade of social media postings, tweets and other forms of lowbrow nonsense?
No.
Lies, deception, exaggeration, conspiracy theories, bigfoot sightings, misguided dogma, attention grabbing weasels, and other forms of uncultivated behavior are as old as our species…but so is the conviction that the truth matters.
Facts are facts, perceptions are perceptions and lies are lies. Each is powerful and each serves a purpose. But you must know the difference and act accordingly.
Why?
Because self-respect, trust, and character are built on truth…not on lies.
The acceptance of truth is a moral obligation, not an option. Lies destroy progress, compromise character, undermine self-esteem and ruin relationships with others and ourselves.
Truth is what it is — the truth. Your health, wealth, relationships, and peace of mind are what they are. Stick with the facts and you’ll never have to rely on a good memory.
Every decision about your life must be based on truth. Unfortunately the truth often becomes a piñata for those unwilling to accept reality.
This is true for someone unwilling to admit to an addiction, a bad marriage, a competitive liability, a criminal act, or an ethical injustice. Resist the truth long enough and the backlash will be inevitable.
The truth is often viewed as a blunt instrument, it is the one thing that most people resist at all costs and often wait until all options are exhausted before accepting or acknowledging.
While progress is desirable, the truth is often the first casualty being thrown overboard without a life preserver.
Everyone must understand that the truth is out there, it consists of facts, not perceptions and most likely it will really make you uncomfortable especially if you do not like it.
Everyone has the right to believe and accept what he or she wants, but truth doesn’t discriminate.
Truth is not different for different people. Not once has truth excused anyone for good intentions, ignorance, or stubbornness.
Truth shows no mercy, accepts no excuses, issues no pardons…and does not turn the other cheek.
This does not mean that truth is cruel, it simply means that truth is. That’s why you must confront truth and reality as it is, not as it was or as you wish it to be.
You have no choice but to see the world in the purest, most transparent way possible, or you can’t make decisions on a rational basis.
You must embrace this profound virtue, as you simply cannot make legitimate progress by evading facts. Accept the true facts of reality as an absolute.
Truth nibbles, scratches, rubs some the wrong way, and yes sometimes it bites, but accept it for what it is, because in the end that’s all that matters.
Accept, confront and embrace truth, as it is the foundation of reality.
Most mistakes and self-engineered fiascos that people create, regardless of position arise from not being willing to face the true reality of a situation and then acting on it.
Accepting truth sounds simple — but it isn’t. It requires that you remove filters that screen out the things that you might not want to see, acknowledge shortcomings and accept the need for change.
Also, acting with truth often means saying and doing things that are not popular, but only by coming to grips with reality will performance improve.
In order to lead, to make well-informed decisions accurate information is essential. Whether or not you like that information is irrelevant, the quality and integrity of information is what counts.
What you need is integrity of data and the willingness to operate with it.
It’s essential to understand that reality isn’t necessarily going to be the way you wish things to be or the way they seem to be; reality is the way things actually are.
Life will occasionally be reduced to the lowest level in Maslow’s hierarchy of needs — survival.
You have both strengths and weaknesses; there is no escaping who you are. Your personality, disposition, and reputation follow you around and you don’t reinvent your self by changing location. You will deal with the same issues no matter where you wind up.
What are you pretending not to know?
What truth are you hiding from?
What part of your reality do you find undesirable?
Denial makes us do this. Refusing to see or acknowledge what is right in front of us — truth, is a way of coping but in the end you only survive, you do not thrive.
Get this and you’ve got it…Truth moves you toward your goals; denial moves you away. Denial is self-imposed deception, convenient cover, yet a poor alibi.
Self-delusion can grip an entire organization and lead the people in it to ridiculous conclusions. Denying truth or reality, for any reason, leads only to stress and frustration and takes you away from your goals.
Know yourself in the most intimate and extreme way. Honesty is the best policy as lies and deception corrupt the soul.
Do you like to be lied to?
How does it make you feel?
Then, why do we so often lie to ourselves?
We lie the loudest when we lie to ourselves. How many years of self-denial will it take before you accept the truth as it is!
Success demands that you have an honest relationship with yourself and others. Refuse to make excuses as they are nothing more than lame attempts to corrupt and submerge the truth; their aim is to prevent truth from exposing sin or revealing one’s true behavior.
Don’t deny the truth in any way…just because you changed the label on a bottle of arsenic does not make it any less dangerous. In fact, it amplifies it, making it worse.
Truth can be inconvenient, especially for those that deny it. We tend to reject that which is not easy to digest, and truth can be a bitter pill.
For the most part, people don’t want to hear painful truths. It seems easier to ignore the facts, even if we succeed only in delaying the inevitable.
Make your bed with blankets of denial and you are guaranteed a lousy night’s sleep. By protecting a lie or false perception, you succeed only in dishonoring the truth and undermining your own credibility.
Anyone serious about achieving excellence and personal mastery must develop the habit of examining premises and beliefs; otherwise, one risks dining on delusions.
When truth is harsh, the exit ramp of denial looks appealing. But don’t go there. Take the high road of truth.
Denial is addictive and perhaps that’s why so many indulge in its fruits. Denial is propaganda, a blindfold, a retreat from truth.
If you’re going to avoid anything, avoid the always present, ever-tempting world of denial.
Truth has meaningful influence. To function optimally, you must, in every instance maintain an up close and personal view of the truth. Aim for a lifetime rendezvous.
Pound for pound— the truth is the undefeated heavyweight champ!
Gary Ryan Blair is creator of the 100 Day Challenge…a radical approach to goal achievement that shows people how to achieve 10X size goals by applying the methods and best practices of growth hacking. Get all the details here.
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