Busy week so far, everything has been kind of rushed at work, a lot of it since I’m moving, some of it because of the nature of the job in general. Understandably whenever things are going up for review there is more of a tendency to set unspoken deadlines and just ratchet up the urgency of otherwise daily tasks. I’m not complaining since a lot of it is expected, learning on the job. I’m thinking my next assignment will require some of this perspective as well.
Got into a long-short conversation with a co-worker about some of my previous research and interests in psychology, namely interpersonal relations and of course deviant behavior. Verbalizing some of it made me realize how much information I’ve actually soaked up over the years, some of it academic, but some of it real life experience as well. I suppose I’ve applied it to real life settings in more ways than none, although sometimes I think the extra knowledge has given me too much peace of mind. I tend not to be frazzled by much, that is that I’m not really bothered by most people’s behaviors even it it is questionable, or even deviant as long as it is not having an adverse affect on myself or the people close to me.
Probably partly why I’m actually a little intrigued by crazy people that I come across on the street. Of course there are those that cross the line. We all have limits to patience and boundraries to personal space. And it seems like the bigger the city, the more deviant the street people can be. The thing I never understand is for people who are down on their luck and are asking for money, is that they think that being agressive is the way to do it. It violates some of the simple rules for effective panhandling out of sympathy which I’ve come to notice in my year living in the city
I guess this is all loosely related to why I’ve always thought that tolerance of those around you requires you to be at peace with yourself. Our reactions to people we don’t like actually speak much to ourselves in more ways than none. The more or a reactionary asshole we might be really reflects more on our peace of mind than the person who set us off in the first place. Which is why I’ve always seen tolerance as a source of strength, not being a pushover, or a wimp. Honestly if in your heart and mind you have nothing to prove to anyone around you can be disempowering to any adversary that may cross your path.
Not sure if I would call this compassion for strangers, or even aloofness. I recognize that this attitude at times causes people to underestimate me, but honestly I’m not too bothered by that either. I’ve kind of taken the attitude that those who are this prejudging of others probably aren’t worth the energy.