The Common Jerk, Entry 6

Ever had someone tell you not to stress; something will come your way? Me too, and these sorts of people are real kibitzers as far as I am concerned. 

It's one thing for someone to give you bad advice or to intentionally steer you in the wrong direction, but when Fatefools and Fullofits say, "There's no need to worry about it. Something will come your way," they are either moral klutzes or passive-aggressive bullies. 

I'm all for a rounded view of things, so let's pretend these jerks are innocent for moment. 

Fatefools are the most ubiquitous form of moral klutzes out there. To clear things up, a fatefool believes in the natural order of things  and, if you want it bad enough, you'll get it. Moral klutzes are people who try to do the right things, but end up causing more damage than was being done. You can see how these two types of jerks might intertwine. 

Fatefools strongly believe in a type of fate in which things  . . . just happen. Forget writing, to be a writer all I need to do nothing else but really, really want it. This is a very shortsighted viewpoint. Luck and writing alone will not make you a professional writer. 

So when a fatefool pats their sweaty palms on your back, chuckles, and advises you to relax, they could be doing more harm than good. One, they are filling you with false confidence, which could result in tragedy later on. Two, if you actually listen to them, you will accomplish nothing. 

You've gotta feel sorry for fatefools, for they know not what they do. They don't mean to harm you or not take the situation seriously enough. Their aim is to be soothing, although they might as well shut up to being with. 

Fullofits, on the other hand, deserve no sympathy. These are passive-aggressive little bastards who would love to see your self-destruction. They come off as fatefools, but only because they want to see you crash and burn.

They tell you not to worry because it'll work out on its own, knowing that it won't and the longer you take to act - really act - the sooner you will accomplish nothing in your life. 

They chortle with warm hands on their bellies, somewhere off in a foreign lair. For all we know, they want you from an evil crystal ball that's black instead of clear! 

What can any of us do about it?

For fatefools there's hope. Tone it down a bit when you're giving advice. Instead of suggesting things will naturally play out, maybe suggests some hard work, discipline, knowledge, traveling, networking, marketing, foresight, close attentiveness to the field and even a little schmoozing. 

As for fullofits, there's not much to be done. If we all stop listening to them, they will have to start giving bad advice to each other and in the end, nothing will come of them. They will be the ones to self-destruct. 


But what is the best answer for all this?

Nothing. You should just relax, and something will work out.