This week I came across a nugget titled; ‘Itching Ears’, which I found very insightful and gleaned so many profound lessons from. I’ll share some excerpts from this nugget:
“From the conscience that shrinks from new truth, from the laziness that is content with half truths, from the arrogance that thinks it knows all truth, O God of truth deliver us. We can’t stand the truth, so we heap for ourselves people to tell us what we want to hear. We read and cite works that agree with our prejudices. And we choose friends, politicians, and preachers to tickle us with versions we resonate with”.
Come to think of it, everyone of us is guilty of this to some extent, only that the degree of our guilt may vary. So it is safe to say that we all have ‘itching ears’, just that the ‘ears’ of some are ‘itching’ more than others. The truth is that may of us have become so mediocre that we get so uncomfortable around (or outrightly dislike) people who insist on doing things the right way and at the right time; excellence has become so discomforting, especially for many young people.
For instance, feedback from many of the students who have come under my tutelage think me to be stern, mean, and some even say ‘wicked’, and their justification for these perceptions are; I insist on coming to class regularly and promptly, I insist that they study and make the best of their time in school, I insist on avoiding the use of smartphones during lectures, I insist on silence and concentration during lectures, among others. I am certainly not their favorite, but you know what? I may still not be a favorite even if I was permissive, and besides excellence is more valuable than some mediocre validations. So why not continue to pursue excellence?
Who’s with me on this pursuit for excellence; slowly but surely? Kindly indicate in the comment section
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IG: @dr_mykk
