‘Seven Holy paths to Hell and your trip begins’ as the song goes.

So, if the nine attributes that allow you to succeed (however that looks to you) are money, resourcefulness, assertiveness, attractiveness, submission, communication, networking, intelligence and smart then what counters them?

I think the Bible still has a lot to teach us (I’m not overly religious but, from an analytical standpoint, religion is on to something) when it comes to how we should conduct ourselves. Ultimately, the fight between the Seven Deadly Sins and the Seven Holy Virtues (as depicted in the fifth century Prudentius poem, Psychomachia) is about balance and how we achieve harmony not just with each other but within ourselves.

And that’s partly the reason behind the previous three blogs. I feel that we, as a species, had an equilibrium with ourselves for a time but it’s now out of kilter. There’s a disturbance in the Force, you might say but I believe it’s true. A lot of things that had meaning have lost it and what’s replaced it has little to no meaning or, at the very least, a superficial meaning. Social media, we could argue, has replaced religion to some degree only instead of finding faith and being given a sense of belonging and purpose whilst also being treated and known as an individual, it’s been replaced with an online scramble for attention. To me, it’s like the adults have left the room and the kids are fighting over who has the best toy. We had something representing order, structure and discipline. A communal template where we walk our path to maturity and adulthood. And now, I see a lot of things in disarray. Yes, people still get things achieved but it seems messy and uncertain.

When I was looking at those nine attributes, I couldn’t help but think of the Seven Deadly Sins as their mirror images. Attributes that would hinder rather than allow you to chart your path to success. I have added one more that I believe to be of similar weighting. Let’s go over the originals.

Pride

Over-confidence. Arrogance. Vanity. You could throw in narcissism as well since it’s very much a focal point of modern Western culture through Facebook, Instagram, etc. The problem with pride is that you’re blind to other things around you that can actually be of use. When you truly think you can lead that project, score that goal, develop that idea or carry out any other task completely on your own then you’ve just set yourself up for failure. ‘Pride comes before the fall’ and it’s very true. If you’re not aware of your surroundings and fixate on achieving that one objective that you just know will get you noticed, then you’re not going to see the cliff until you’ve fallen off it. Others will see you mindlessly moving towards it but because you thought you could do it all on your own, people will let you fall.

The other issue with pride is it stops you asking for help. As Darwin said, ‘Arrogance breeds confidence’ and so you probably won’t even think to ask anyone around you for support. Or, if you have, then you’ve decided they’re not good enough and you’re the only capable of completing the task.

Pride makes you stupid. It stops you using your intelligence and seeing what’s around that could make you do the job better.

Envy

Pride can be positive in certain contexts. Your child does well at school, or your SO gets a new job or a promotion. The same can’t really be said for envy. If you’re envious then you’re spending too much time focusing on what someone else has that you do not. This, from my experience, comes from feelings of insecurity, low self-esteem and low self-worth. A person can be completely capable of doing all the things another can, but they just don’t believe it. And that disbelief turns into a toxic mix of anger, depression and, in some cases, hatred. A person can be angry because they see another as being able to do or have something, they perceive themselves as unable of achieving or obtaining. They become frustrated because they’ve worked so hard and have nothing to show for it meanwhile someone else has a seemingly easier time and has gained more rewards. The more this goes on, the more the envious person gets trapped by the thoughts and, eventually, depression sets in and sends them down a destructive path which may manifest into hatred towards the other person where it may be projected onto them.

Envy is dangerous to both yourself and others.