Hanging in my office, there are two kinda things that I have on my walls: 1) Calendars pertaining to work, and 2) not so inspirational quotes.
Why non inspirational you ask? Well I am a cynic at heart. The world is what it is, and no matter how inspired you are, or how uplifting the quote is, the universe will find a way to ruin your day.
Some of my quotes are "work until your bank account looks like a phone number". Awesome quote. The downside is that you don't see your family, let alone have the time to enjoy the new 7 (or 10) digit number you've built. Or " they said dress for the job you want, so I'm sitting in the HR department dressed as Boba Fett". Funny, but unless you work at IBH Inc. (Intergalactic Bounty Hunters Inc.), that's exactly where you will wind up.
I say these examples to bring up my latest quote. It's from everyone's favorite guy dressed in an iron suit. the quote is "Listen, smile, agree, and then do whatever the F*@# you were gonna do anyway." This Robert Downey Jr. quote at first seemed awesome to me. It reminds you that you have to forge your own way through work, society, life in general. Who cares what someone tells you is right thing to do? What the hell do they know? Listen to them and flash that deadly smile like you get it, but you know you ALREADY GOT IT.
Being a manager, it works on so many levels. But then when you read it again, you realize people are doing the same to you. What's right anymore? Is anyone listening to anyone else anymore? If we all forge our own way, who is there to guide us through our mistakes and foster our futures?
Then I reminded myself who said it. A man who's bottom dropped out in his career, in his personal life, and who even did jail time. But also, this is the same man who forged his own path, got his life together on his own, and became one of the most recognizable and highest paid actors in history. He followed his own advice through the bad times as well as the good.
Maybe even the not so inspirational quotes can still have that glimmer that this world ain't so tough.
