"The superior man is modest in his speech, but exceeds in his actions" - Confucius 

To be modest in your speech is to not boast. To exceed in your actions is to do more, and better, than required. This presents a conundrum: If Bob is a superior man, then how is he to ensure he is recognized for his actions? There are always people out there who make lots of noise and Flash, who stand out and say that they are best, or who know how to schmooze with the best. Sometimes they are con-men, and these are easy to hate. They are often easy to pick out, and easy to warn against. Other times, they are not, precisely, con-men. Rather, they are as competent as the next person, but they also possess the ability to put their best foot forward, to let themselves be seen and noticed. You don't feel the need to hate them, you just hate the fact that social skills seem to matter so much. 

This quote is by the Chinese philosopher Confucius, and the sentiment expressed in it echoes his thoughts. In the scheme of Confucius's Analects, the superior man is modest, yet he will eventually be recognized for what he is. The will of the people and the blessings of heaven will, slowly but surely, rain down upon him so that he will grow successful, powerful, and meaningful, by being the superior man, by being effective. He is effective not because of what he is or what he presents himself as, but because he acts in accord with nature, the nature of the world and of humanity. This, at least, is the idea. Thus, partly by faith and partly by philosophy, the superior man does not have to be loud and flashy to gain acclaim. 

This is a nice theory, but it is also a theory which we suspect has its flaws. Ideally, yes, we should be able to judge people by their effectiveness. The best person for the job should get the promotion, the hardest worker should get the biggest bonus, and the smartest person should make the most vital decisions. Sometimes this is the case, and sometimes it is not. If we accept the philosophy of Confucius and believe that the superior man will triumph in the end, then why would it appear to not be so? There are several possibilities.

 The first is, that the idea does work out, but that this happens over large time-scales. How long are you willing to wait for your shot, to wait to be recognized? Ten years? Twenty? Thirty? What if there is no room to move up in the company, no chance to meet the guy, no time to work on your novel? What if you change jobs, the technology you use changes, the connections you've built up over time don't matter? What if you missed your only chance to ask for the date, pitch the invention, or write the book, all because you thought that there would be another chance? We so often recognize what we have lost after the fact, and only when we think back on it. We can trust to fate - but do we dare to? That is, that I am at fault for my present circumstances. 

    A second option is that someone else is at fault. Why do we stare so at people who have Flash and glamor, who make noise and claim rewards? Why do we so often equate social skills with high capabilities in other areas? Our quote first reads like an admonition to be the superior man, to be humble and quiet but great in other ways. However, if we turn this around, then the quote becomes an admonition to us to look for the superior man. When you notice people, when you think of who to give the promotion to, or who you should say yes to, or who is worth listening to - perhaps you should actively seek for Confucius's 'superior man'. You should look for him, design your radar around him, because he will, quite often, not come to you. You must go to him. For myself, I believe that I am not the superior man. If I may be so bold, I am humble enough that I seem to fit the first requirement, but I am not sure that I fit the second. Of course I can't help noticing that I haven't been noticed - or at least, it doesn't feel like it. Yet why should I expect differently? I've produced no great work, held no steady job, and made few new acquaintances. Leaving humility beside, I have not been effective, at least not in a productive way. I may, however, hope that I have been so in a non-productive way, a preparatory way. Can I get some brave work done now, and take advantage of my own nature?

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