"He who lives by the approval of others will die by the absence of the same." - Steven Furtick
I don't think there's a man on the planet that can't identify with this statement to some degree or another. At a minimum I think we all want approval from our families, our wives and our children. Could write an entire post about getting approval from our fathers alone. For some of us this approval addiction goes much further, permeating our professional lives. The hardcore addicts can't ever get enough of it, even when they are at the pinnacle of 'success'. Often times the more accolades they receive the more they desire. It's never enough.
In our new 'global community' of the web, twitter, facebook, blogs, etc...we're even more exposed to the success and triumphs of others in our field and thus can suffer by comparison at an even deeper level. We not only want the approval of those we lead but from our ever expanding peer group as well. Are we being re-tweeted? How many hits is our blog getting? How many followers? Is anyone paying attention to us at all?
So what happens when you don't get your fix? What happens when it all goes away and you suddenly find yourself alone with...well... with nothing but yourself? Where does your self worth come from then? What's next? For many men, the 'what's next' is depression.
Men don't talk about it much, but depression is real. No man is immune, especially those who find their worth in the approval of others. Quite frankly, the higher we climb, the greater the opportunity we have to fail. And to make matters worse, as men, we let pride, shame and a fear of appearing weak prevent us from getting the help we need. But help is out there in many, many forms. And you need to know that you are not alone. check out this clip from Tom Johnson, former CEO of the L.A. Times and then CNN.
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