Filet Mignon & Cube Steak (it’s all steak)

A strong and well-constituted man digests his experiences (deeds and misdeeds all included) just as he digests his meats, even when he has some tough morsels to swallow. – Friedrich Nietzsche

Looking at this post in my Drafts folder I wasn’t sure if I was going to actually write the post or not.

It is, however, a great quote, and the title, which I wasn’t sure about, is pretty good.

My point (with this post) is that every experience has something to teach us.

Everything that happens in our life is an opportunity to learn and grow.

Just as cube steak (a low quality cut of meat which mechanically tenderized) is made of the same stuff (overall) as the finest cuts of meat, so to are our experiences. They are the stuff of life and even if some are less flavorful (or even down-right objectionable), they are delicious if we “see” them properly.

If you had some cube steak and didn’t like it (wishing it was something different, like a well-marbled rib-eye… ), you wouldn’t buy it again – would you?

I certainly hope not.

You may finish the less-than-desirable cube steak, because it does fill your belly and you paid good money for it, but you’d learn that if you want steak you’re going to hold out for a better cut.

So to with our lives.

If something happens that we don’t “like” we can either learn from or (likely) repeat the experience (and the mistake… ).

It is the wise diner, and person, that chews the tough morsels that come along, but doesn’t continually choose foods (or experiences) that don’t delight the palate.

Similar Posts

  • Focus (Not Worry)

    Worry is interest paid on trouble before it comes due. – William Ralph Inge To echo Inge’s brilliant sentiment, (I’ve often said:) worry is a prayer for what you don’t want. Focus on what you want. (Don’t know what you want? Figure it out. And then… yeah, you guessed it: focus on it.)

  • The Shipment-Driven Life

    Seth Godin is a huge mentor and teacher for me. I subscribe to his blog updates and have read several of his books. Lately he has been talking a lot about the importance of shipping. Shipping is actually getting things done. It’s finishing stuff and getting it out the door. Shipping is not about perfection,…

  • I Don’t Know

    To be conscious that you are ignorant of the facts is a great step to knowledge. – Benjamin Disraeli Those three words can be some of the most powerful. As important is what we follow those words with. “I don’t know, and I’m going to learn.” “I don’t know, and that’s okay.” “I don’t know,…

  • Be Clear

    It’s not so much how busy you are, but why you are busy. The bee is praised. The mosquito is swatted. – Mary Flannery O’Connor It’s not enough to not be passive, one must have desire. It’s not enough to move, one must have a purpose. It’s not enough to be active, one must be…

  • Seeing Things Anew

    “Discovery consists of seeing what everybody has seen and thinking what nobody else has thought.” – Jonathan Swift This reminds me of an oft-quoted line: when you change the way you look at things, the things you look at change. Both are excellent reminders that our perceptions and ways of seeing things are habits (that…