As you read on, you’ll discover that I will have quite a number of award posts lining up. Every time I received such notification, I go wild with ecstatic! This means a lot to me as it is a clear indication that my words have reach out to people and I am being recognise in the blogosphere community. This is more than enough for me.
When I started out writing, my only goal is to write all I have seen and experience in my career off my chest and hopefully reach out to folks, warning them not to make the same mistakes that I did. I’ve learnt the hard way, stumbling and falling over obstacles, biases, racism but I had a few good mentors who taught me and guide me without asking anything in return hence this is a platform for me to pay it forward.
But this post isn’t about just me but it is also about getting recognition up and over your head; and it has happened in the workplace before. People change suddenly when they are in the spotlight and they lost control bit by bit and soon lost it all. We have seen how stars spiraled out of control, turning to drugs and alcohol, being destructive in their life. As you watch another episode of Entertainment Tonight, hosts talking about yet another famous actor arrested under DUI, you wonder how their lives get so chaotic. You’ll be thinking it will not happen to you but it can, probably in form of smaller scale but it can.
It is easy to lose focus of what is most important to you: your identity, your passion and why you are doing what you are doing in the first place. Fame and power can get into your head once you have too much goings in your life suddenly. You can be suddenly propelled into a managerial position or have a great leap of promotion, along comes a big raise in pay. You start changing your lifestyle habits because you can. You are in better restaurants, you bought better clothes, heck, you even start to isolate your friends, not deliberately of course but they couldn’t catch up with your new lifestyle and gradually drop out. You felt hurt but you shrug off as you start to think you are better than most anyways. You started to form different opinions about things and life, losing track of who you are.
Stop for a moment and remember your roots, your purposes, your friends, your colleagues – people who once matters to you and help to get where you are right now. Be humble and remember that all good things in life happens because of what you have done and continue to do so. Those let materialistic importance clouded their view will end up spiraling downwards instead of upwards.
If you are not careful, you end up hurting not only yourself but the people around you. I came across one news article recently about a Singapore blogger who was so self-indulgent of her own popularity, she forgot her words can hurt. Words and pen are swords and weaponry to a writer, if not use appropriately, it could cause lasting damage.
So what is her crime? Her post was all about bashing a bride and groom wedding, a couple whom she is not close with but was invited as a guest of her husband’s. She criticised their wedding car, their choice of food down to the bride’s wedding gown. All posted up on her blog with photos. The post has since been taken down and she has apologised publicly as well as to the affected couple and their families.
We should forgive and move on but we shouldn’t forget because such mistakes do recur. Maybe not by her again but by someone else, maybe by another fame careless blogger. But let us learn from her mistakes and many others like Amy Winehouse, Britney Spears, Justin Bieber etc. Not letting power getting into your head and stay true of yourself.
From time to time, asked yourself earnestly and get feedback from your closest loved ones, have you change? If yes, for the better or worse? Don’t ever let fame, power or promotion change who you are. Because it will be the saddest thing ever.
Have you had someone close to you spiral downhill? Please share your thoughts below.
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