Do you have what it takes to be in control of your own Fate? Do you believe that you are the master of your Destiny?
In my early twenties I was duped by a shrewd marketer from New Jersey who ran a multilevel marketing company out of Las Vegas. I didn’t know him personally, but I was tricked by the people that he trained. He taught them how to take advantage of powerful loopholes in a person’s thinking. The idea of being the master of your own destiny was one of those.
They took advantage of the notion of mastering destiny through a few key concepts. Some of the concepts were that you wouldn’t fail if you just tried hard enough, that you should ‘fake it until you make it’ and if you did not succeed, it was because you didn’t try hard enough or didn’t believe in yourself. Who would want to admit that they didn’t believe in themselves?
This company was eventually shut down by the FTC (Federal Trade Commission)
The concept that we are master’s of our own destiny can be very dangerous. It can be exploited. It is also not true.
Another misconception that arises out of this idea is from those who market their ‘success secrets’. The notion is that if you read their secrets you can duplicate their success. But if it were that simple, everyone would be doing it.
Success isn’t necessarily duplicateable, because there are many factors involved in success. The circumstances that make up a person’s environment and background may not be similar to many other people’s situations. You also don’t have the same resources as that person.
If we were truly the masters of our own destiny, any one of us could decide to be the President of the World tomorrow when we woke up. But the reality is, you can wish all night and day for that to happen and there is no way you are going to wake up as the ruler of the world tomorrow.
Have you ever been in a bad situation, and wished you could make the consequences or the harsh reality of it completely go away? Were you able to?
The notion that we are masters of our destiny seems to be this suttle idea that slinks in the background of whatever we do or have conversations about. I admit it is a seductively wonderful notion that can make you feel drunk with the illusion of control.
As human beings, we don’t want to admit that we are not in complete control of what happens to us and our lives. We CAN often affect what happens. It is a matter of degree. It takes honesty and sober assessment to recognize that we have far less control than we would like to believe.
To be sure, there are times when you can make a difference. That is not the same has having complete control over what happens to you in your life. We can make choices and we can have control over our own thoughts and attitudes. However, most of the time, you cannot make something happen just because you want it to.
You cannot buy a particular house that never goes up for sale. You cannot attend a school that will not accept you. You cannot have wings like a bird or breathe underwater. As human beings we have limitations.
To put it simply, you cannot always have what you want. Sometimes you can, but not always and perhaps not even most of the time. Therefore we are not masters of our destiny.
The notion of mastering our own destinies is a dream. It is a beautiful dream, but it is not reality. There are many forces that may conspire against us. Let’s say the sum total of those forces is called fate. Generally, you cannot change your fate. And you cannot master fate.
Beware of those shrewd people who will take advantage of the idealist in you that wants to believe in a beautiful dream. Why do they call it a dream?
Some dreams do come true. That is fate. Some do not and that is also fate.
However, the notion that you can control your fate if you ‘just try hard enough’ appears frequently in marketing. “Buy this course to learn how to be a millionaire real estate investor.” “Become a millionaire Internet marketer.” People shell out their money to learn the ‘secrets’.
Free your mind from such abusive marketing tactics. Never stated directly, the key is realizing the underlying notion is there. Shrewd marketers are ready to pounce on the loopholes in your psyche to get money out of your wallet and into theirs.
If you still think you can master destiny or fate, I’d be interested to hear your point of view. What do you think?
Maybe I could interest you in purchasing a large bridge between New Jersey and New York? You could charge a toll and make a fortune. You would then be the master of your fate. Sound good? The bridge could sell at anytime and you would miss out on this wonderful opportunity of a lifetime. Lock in your position now. This is a limited time offer. Act now. Time is short. Get the picture?
David Snape writes for All Things Pondered: https://allthingspondered.com . You may copy this article to your website or blog provided that this author bio remains intact and the hyperlink is active.