Man on a Mission

Disclaimer: To keep the alliteration, I used “Man.” This post obviously applies to women as well.

You don’t need a year like 2020 to realize that the world is a crazy place. Like a capricious storm, she roars chaos, uncertainty, unknown—and no man dares to go near her. Our biological imperative has always been to survive, which we’ve learned to do by adapting to our changing environment. The world acts, we follow. Shit happens, we react.

This is true for most people. Yes, we’re taught from a young age the importance of taking initiative, but in practice, the overwhelming majority of us unfortunately don't. Instead, we often delude ourselves into believing we have a bias for action, passing off our propensity for risk aversion as procrastination gone unchecked. Many of us naturally seek stability; stability increases our chances of survival, and surviving means satisfying our most basic biological need.

But the man on a mission is different. He has a vision for how the world should look and is relentless in his pursuit to achieve it. He doesn’t crave stability, he creates stability. And like a low flame dancing in a dark room, his presence is something people can’t help but notice. They're instinctively drawn to his beliefs, not always because they're true but because they're convenient to follow. When people need something to believe in, he’s there.

The man on a mission is not a person, nor is it a group of people; it is a mindset. At its best, it can lead millions to freedom or advance women’s rights. At its worst, it can precipitate the holocaust or leave a global superpower strongly divided.

Don’t think of this mindset as a special gift bestowed upon a select few. You, too, can have a mission. Whichever room you’re in, you too belong. So don’t let your mission go to waste. Get out there and make it happen, and who knows—maybe it just might.