Mihailo "Mixa" Jovanovic
The Power of Truth
Very recently, I learned that two friends of mine, Mike and John, who had not seen each other since high school, were sitting at a bar and trying to reflect on the first two decades of their lives. Mike was a successful computer programmer working for HP, while John, on the other hand, was unemployed. How could these two guys with similar backgrounds have completely different life stories? Simply because all his life, Mike was surrounded with sometimes unfavorable truth and honesty, and John lived in beautiful lies.
Based on his grades and SAT scores, Mike's parents knew he was not as smart as he needed to be for acceptance to MIT. They were honest with him and they told him that he did not have the potential to go to MIT and become a nuclear engineer. Mike accepted the truth, went to a less known college, and earned his bachelors degree in computer science. John was a student of the same caliber, but John's parents did not want to "disappoint and hurt John" so they paid for his MIT education. John failed most of his classes and dropped out of college after his first year.
As I have reflected on this, I have come to believe that the question all human beings should ask themselves is: "Should I choose to live in beautiful lies, or accept the sometimes inconvenient truth?" Today, however, it is so common to hear about a person who says something untruthful just to make a loved one not feel bad. Despite the intentions not to hurt the friend, harm is always done. People need to stay away from the illusion that lies are going to make them feel better.
Lies usually come directly from us or the ones to whom we are closest, because these are the people who care the most. However, I believe that everyone should always be maximally honest to themselves. In my opinion, we should tell the ones we care about to do the same. I know it is better to hear the truth from someone who loves you, than from random strangers who have nothing to lose because they have no connection with you. Do not say that you are doing a wonderful job if you are performing in a mediocre way. Do not say you can do something if you are certain you cannot.
It took John twenty years to figure out that the beautiful lies are truly damaging, while the realness comes with the sometimes inconvenient truth. Let us all be truthful to each other, and stop trying to find a nice way to say something. Just tell it as it is, because I believe truth "hurts" less!
About Mihailo "Mixa" Jovanovic
Mihailo "Mixa" Jovanovic, from Belgrade, Serbia, serves as Vice-President of MSG, an Ambassador, and an RA. He is a Junior business finance major with a marketing minor. His personal career goal is to become a financial consultant and help people manage their money better to "make them wealthier." His favorite aspect about Mercyhurst is the friendliness of people and the close relationships among students, faculty, and administrators.