The influencer, the alpha male or female, the stud, the glamour queen, the big boss etc. etc. etc. We all know or have come across such people… The big fish in their small ponds…
If you live in a small world such people could be your much needed motivation or the meal ticket, you are dependent on. In everyone’s professional and personal circles such people exist, some harmless and amusing, some toxic and domineering.
Whether these people earn their position, self-proclaim it, or got there due to family money or just sucking the right dicks they somehow got there. Be it money, success, confidence, arrogance, or reputation something put them ahead of everyone else in their circles of influence.
For me such people are amusing and can also be very pathetic if viewed from the big world perspective. Many of these big don’t realize how fragile their position is in the small ponds in which they swim. For example, if their ponds leak it will quickly become a puddle and then nothing but mud, and the fish big and small fish will just become food for the maggots. Most of these people are harmless and just seek to relish the attention and fake affection they are given by others. Like fat pigs wallowing in their own shit on a hot day.
The issue with such people is when you have to start interacting with them, something I avoid unless it’s totally necessary for my interests. I am lucky as I class myself being outside of the mainstream, which might be for better or worse, but it’s where I am comfortable. I do my best to live my way, by my values and to have unbiased and honest opinions and perspectives. I have no reason to be influenced by others and have the life experience to understand people and this world better than most.
I see the world as being made up of many ponds, some big and some small, all full of fish looking to be the fattest one in their limited environment. When you interact with people you must always assess what makes them tick, be it money, power, sex, some vice, or fixation. When you can understand someone’s environment and motivation then you can begin to understand them.
This is an essential life skill which many people find impossible because their own preprogrammed insecurities and prejudices. To be able to view issues from all perspectives and formulate unbiased options is a rare skill in today’s world where far left, far right or woke extremism are the main flavors that the weak minded love to devour.
Understand that people’s perspectives are limited to the content that they are exposed to in their environments, well for this article’s sake we shall say their ponds. There is an old joke in the firearms world that the Russian police used to swear by the fact that the Makarov pistol was the best in the world… Why? Because it was the only pistol they had ever seen. BTW, the Makarov is a classic pistol, which I have a fondness for.
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So to understand people, you must understand the limits of their environment, what content they have been exposed to, what though process has influenced them, and how have they been brainwashed while swimming in their ponds.
Great thinkers and great ideas are regularly dismissed by those they present their products and materials to, why? Because small minded people tend to be afraid of new ideas, it’s that simple. People are generally afraid of anything that could upset or muddies the waters of their pond. New perspectives are usually frowned upon, especially if coming from a source outside of the pond, unless of course they are introduced by one of the big fish.
The big fish are also usually very wary of outside influences that could undermine their position in the food chain. This where they can become problematic by using their influence and contacts to discredit, sabotage or destroy those who challenge their ignorance and expose their limited wisdom. Progression always leaves some behind, this is why many fear it.
What I am talking about here is the truth about all human gangs or tribes from school yards, to corporations and international politics. The big fish fear to be out done, they fear ideas that they cannot credit as their own. They also tend to fear what is outside of their pond, because they know that in the big sea there is a good chance the big fish, the fat fish will be the first to be eaten by the sharks.
To be a big fish is to be a target. Predators don’t want to chew on bones, they want meat, or fat baits to catch bigger fish. Understand that if you find yourself growing and gaining influence within your pond then you will become a target. The big fish will want to eat you and the smaller ones will want to steal your food so they too can become fatter.
Most people don’t realize how fragile their worlds are. How fragile their life, work, social circles or the positions they hold in their little ponds. Life in general is short and temporary as are the things in it, be it relationships, jobs, money, success and failures. If you understand this fact you are on the way to understanding life.
The weakness of most of the big fish is that they are blind to the reality of life, to their own mortality. People rise and fall, this is part of being human. The trick is when you fall not to hurt yourself too much and when you get up again try to be in a position, maybe not as high as you fell from, but at least with a good view. Every boxer know when they win a title there will be contenders lining up to knock them out, and one will, this is life. The undefeated are those that retire before they are knocked out.
When you have to deal with a big fish look past their arrogance and attitude issues and see their fragility, insecurities, and fear of being eaten by the predators and parasites that surround them. Also, their fear for their pond, where the water could leak out or just evaporate, even worse would be where the sea would breach the walls of their pond and then the sharks would come to feed. Being a big fish in a pond full of sharks is not a good place to be.
Big fish in small ponds can have good lives, comfortable lives, but my advice to people would be to be very careful if you live in a small pond because your resources are very limited to start with, and its very easy for you to be eaten. It’s better to leave to pond and learn to swim with the sharks, that way if nothing else you will always have an abundance of big fish to feed on…
Truth Only Has Few Friends 