Quote:

Merriam Webster

Deserve

Etymology: Middle English, from Old French deservir, from Latin deservire to devote oneself to, from de- + servire to serve.

A. to be worthy of : MERIT <deserves another chance>

---

I include the etymology as well as the definition because I find the contrast between the two very meaningful.  It has occurred to me recently that what I deserve is exactly what I choose to devote myself to, or serve.  When I devote myself to a limiting belief about who I am, or what I am capable of, the consequences are exactly what I deserve.

I've spent the past four months devoting myself to working 6 days per week at a job I dislike, for a miserable wage, and have been clinging to the belief that it is not what I deserve. 

How silly!  What else could possibly happen in my life when I choose a course which I find unrewarding?  Much like investments, the lowest risk vehicles usually have correspondingly low returns.  As I have been unwilling to take the riskier path of starting my own business, I have continued to work as an employee.

On Tuesday I will give two weeks notice at my current job.  I have arranged to work part-time as a nanny while I build my client base for my bookkeeping business. The consequences of these choices will be exactly what I deserve. 

How about you? What do you deserve in your life?  What are you serving?

Quote:

Effort. Since a rational man knows that man must achieve his goals by his own effort, he knows that neither wealth nor jobs nor any human values exist in a given, limited, static quantity, waiting to be divided. He knows that all benefits have to be produced, that the gain of one man does not represent the loss of another, that a man's achievement is not earned at the expense of those who have not achieved it.

Therefore, he never imagines that he has any sort of unearned, unilateral claim on any human being - and he never leaves his interests at the mercy of any one person or single, specific concrete. He may need clients, but not any one particular customer - he may need a job, but not any one particular job.

If he encounters competition, he either meets it or chooses another line of work. There is no job so slow that a better, more skillful performance of it would pass unnoticed and unappreciated; not in a free society. Ask any office manager.

It is only the passive, parasitical representatives of the "humility metaphysics" school who regard any competitor as a threat, because the thought of earning one's position by personal merit is not a part of their view of life. They regard themselves as interchangeable mediocrities who have nothing to offer and who fight, in a "static" universe, for someone's causeless favor.

A rational man knows that one does not live by means of "luck", "breaks", or favors, that there is no such thing as an "only chance" or a single opportunity, and that this is guaranteed precisely by the existence of competition. He does not regard any concrete, specific goal or value as irreplaceable. He knows that only persons are irreplaceable - only those one loves.

He knows also that there are no conflicts of interests among rational men even in the issue of love. Like any other value, love is not a static quantity to be divided, but an unlimited response to be earned. The love for one friend is not a threat to the love for another, and neither is they love for the various members of one's family, assuming they have earned it. The most exclusive form - romantic love - is not an issue of competition. If two men are in love with the same woman, what she feels for either of them is not determined by what she feels for the other and is not taken away from him. If she chooses one of them, the "loser" could not have had what the "winner" has earned. It is only among the irrational, emotion-motivated persons, whose love is divorced from any standards of value, that chance rivalries, accidental conflicts and blind choices prevail. But then, whoever wins does not win much. Among the emotion-driven, neither love nor any other emotion has any meaning.
-The Virtue of Selfishness

---

Btw, welcome back, Veritas.

blaze2 said:

you just figured this out for yourself, but it is nothing new.

---

fireworks_god said:

    Okay, let's say that one has a goal of being a bass guitarist and leader of a sucessful metal band (not nu-metal, fuck that!). Such a lifetime goal has a lot of risks in it. (after all, low risk-low return. high risk-high return). It requires a lot of someone to be able to pull something like that off.
    There is no way that this goal could ever be acheived (unless one's really lucky) if one doesn't believe one could do it. One would always be faced with "I can't play that well." "No one will listen to our music." "It is way too hard to get a record contract." "I am afraid of contacting these business men. What if they reject me?"
    The truth is, one isn't talented at their instrument unless they BELIEVE they are. Believe me, it requires that extra oomph to be able to play in front of people. One has to have a lot of confidence in what they are doing. If one truly believe's that they are sucessful and are talented and people listen to them, it will come true.
    Obviously, one can't just wish and dream and think they are good. If the person actually believes in themselves, and look at everything through the perspective of their goal, it is crystal clear on what problems come between that, what needs to be done.  Sucess is a process, not a destination. But it is impossible to start down the road to sucess if one doesn't believe they can make it where they are going in the first place. You can sit at home in front of the T.V. and dream and think the world will come to you, or you can believe in yourself and get what needs to be done, done. Actually live the life you want to live. 

---

It seems as though I didn't just figure this out for myself. I still cannot be defined by you.


Peace.

mr_kite said:

What does all that actually mean?!! I'm confused.//

---

What does all of what actually mean? My quoted post of mine, Skorpivo's quote that he provided, Veritas' thread? Be more specific about your confusion and I'll assist.


Peace.

Quote:

neurosis be damned.

---

Amen, brother! 

MushmanTheManic said:

If I was sitting in front of my computer, diligently typing away on The Shroomery, and a satellite fell onto my house... I would be responsible for this experience?

---

More than anyone else would be... the satellite does not produce your experience of reality, nor does your cat...

Your computer does not decide which websites are viewed, but it is, after all, responsible for the ability to view the websites in the first place, is it not?

No one here is proclaiming that one is ultimately responsible for all aspects of reality, but as oneself is the only aspect of reality responsible for one's ability to experience.....


Peace.

mr_kite said:

Because pettyness and stupidity irritates me.

---

Sounds like a developed, refined individual capable of accessing high levels of awareness, truly capable of creating for oneself one's own experience of reality to me!

Unless you have sand in your vagina, which I suggest you check up on, what is there to be irritated about?

Isn't it great, by the way, the philosophical ability to reduce all expressed concepts down to the "starving third-world country" test?

Seriously, now, impoverished nations exist for a reason, the result of the actions as a nation in regards to the environment in which they exist. Living in a desert, after all, thus means that...


Peace.

mr_kite said:

if you're dying from starvation and dehydration, its actually your own fault because of your poor interaction with reality, and you therefore deserve your current situation...but dont blame yourself because that's being wasteful and disempowering..exactly what you DONT need.

---

Sounds pretty much right.

Not all factors are within one's control, especially concerning the environment that has thrust one into a particular situation. If the outcome of such is not to be desired, then, obviously, it was a poor interaction, eh?

That which is one devotes oneself to, is what one deserves. Reality has devoted itself to producing individuals in poor living conditions. The subsequent experience is what the subsquent individuals devote themselves to. After all, if they were devoting themselves to living in a different area and performing different work, then they would be reaping different results, eh?

Its actually a simple concept, no need to get irritated with the way that it is and wonder aloud about those with fates that one wouldn't personally devote themselves to.


Peace.

MushmanTheManic said:

Circumstances can be a bitch. I don't see why it's impossible for someone to devote him/herself to not-starving, but still starve to death.

---

If one was actually devoted to not starving, then one wouldn't starve.

Devoting oneself to the attempt to not starve would be a different story, then it would be entirely possible to still starve to death.

Devotion, to me, is the same as participating in that which one is devoted to, which is the main idea being expressed in this thread. Devotion is engaging in the activity. Its a subtle difference, but yet do you discern it?


Peace.

mr_kite said:

Well the "starving third-world country" test is one of the easiest ways to question (or deny) the existance of a loving God...

---

Who here is discussing the existance of a loving God?

We are discussing how one's actions within reality inevitably lead to the results of those interactions. One presses a door bell, and it rings. Cause and effect. Simple. Now, what's the problem?

Quote:

Dude I think we'll have to agree to disagree cos really I just can't think the way you do.

---

I know, I know, I'm inimitable.

Quote:

If you toned down your English, which is frequently gramatically poor and quite confusing

---

Quote:

, stopped using such big words and trying to appear smarter than you are,

---

I express myself as I naturally express myself. My understanding of the English language is what it is, and my application of that understanding occurs as a result. I do not concern myself with my intellectual appearance, as I am merely interested in openly discussing and exchanging ideas for the advancement of my own and others understanding of reality.

Would you take my word for it? How the fuck would you know who and what I am? Because I used this word or said that statement? Please consider becoming a psychologist, as your analysis of my character is priceless.

Quote:

and just got your point across without all the posing and quasi-intellectual bullshit then maybe we could have a more coherent discussion.

---

Quote:

"If one was actually devoted to not starving, then one wouldn't starve.
"
And take yourself seriously? That's one of the least intelligent things I've heard for ages.

---

As I have already stated, devoting oneself to a certain act is to perform and engage in that act. If one was devoted to not starving, then, obviously, one would be consuming food.

If one consumes an adequate amount of food necessary to survive, then one doesn't starve!

Oh. my. fucking. god. Cause and effect. Where is the intelligence in that?

Quote:

I await your reply dotted with smiling smileys and self-satisfied smugness

D'uh d'uh d'uh

---

Ahh yes, the age old commentary on the usage of emoticons.

Honestly, anyone with a sense of humor doesn't have a problem with them.


Peace.

theolduser said:

"What do you deserve in your life?"

Everything I can get my hands on.

---

Exactly, as it is the act of getting your hands on it that defines that one deserves it, as one has devoted oneself towards getting one's hand on it!

But I've been informed that such is the least intelligent comment ever.


Peace.

Veritas said:

Yes, I agree with you on the standard definition of "deserve." What I found interesting was that the etymology indicated that "worthy" is not an accurate definition.

What do you think of the idea that what we SERVE is what we "deserve"? That it is really not about whether we are worthy or not, but about our focus and action being aligned with our stated goals and values?

---

BlueCoyote said:

What Do You Deserve?
All or nothing ?

---

All and nothing.

redgreenvines said:

i deserve somebody really rich
to love me unconditionally and
to give me a whack of dough so as to keep me
in a painting studio
instead of writing software for a living,
which is second best, and if nothing else - i guess
I deserve to continue doing that and
making wiggy comments on these boards when I get a chance.

---

Yes, that all sounds good. 

Quote:

Me myself
Me myself and i

My ship's been tossed about
Have some decency
The only friends i've got left
Are my idiosyncrasies

Me myself
Me myself and i

---