“Fools will be fools, and wise will be wise, But I will look this world straight in the eyes,
I believe in a better way.
What good is a man, who won’t take a stand? What good is a cynic with no better plan?
I believe in a better way.
Reality is sharp it cuts at me like a knife, Everyone I know is in the fight of their life,
I believe in a better way.
Take your face out of your hands and clear your eyes, You have a right to your dreams and don’t be denied,
I believe in a better way.”
– Lyric from Ben Harper’s “Better Way”
Lyric Month always either begins or ends with this song — that means about 18 or so Ben Harper callouts — but I do believe in a better way. It’s a great song. The beat will keep my heart rate right at 155 on the stair climber. It’s a great lyric. And, it’s a decent mode in which to approach any given day.
Even when things seem perfect (they’re not, you know…?), and even when things are going so well that you can’t imagine them going any better (they could, you know…?) when we always seek a better way, we dramatically increase the odds that we’ll find one.
That’s not a suggestion to stop every step of the way and second guess. In fact, while we simply can’t afford to stop, we can make mental or written note of things we’d do better given the chance to do it again. And, in our quiet time – the time we use for strategy and reflection, we apply what we’ve learned to begin to forge a better way.
My favorite line in this song is “what good is a cynic with no better plan?” As I age, I find cynicism knocks on my door more frequently than it did when I was a younger man. I find I let it in some of the time, usually when a better way is crying out to be found. Cynicism is not, by definition, a bad thing. It becomes a bad thing when the cynic has no better plan. It’s a good thing when it challenges us to find that better way.
Look the world straight in the eyes. Challenge the status quo. Everyone we know is in the fight of their life, so don’t be denied.
Make a difference by finding that better way.
Leave a Reply