I am a Soldier by Mindset
I have always identified with the soldier archetype, even though I never got to serve in my country's military. I like to imagine myself as someone who serves their mission well and gets things done quickly and efficiently.
This mentality has prevailed throughout my life, and it is one of the reasons why I have largely abstained from the world. You may criticize my English for not being as fluent as that of a British or American citizen, or you may disagree with my views. But you cannot logically say that I do not put a lot of effort into whatever I am tasked with doing.
This is why, despite the fact that I have never held an actual gun in my life, I still see myself as a soldier. I believe that my missions in life are worthier than the comforts and luxuries of life itself. I may have lost my physical fitness since the COVID-19 outbreak, but I still heavily identify with the Spartan idea of irreligious, disciplined asceticism. I believe in putting aside comfort and luxury in the name of competence and getting things done as well as possible.
The Rubinshteinic Soldier
I have created the "Rubinshteinic Soldier" archetype, along with the core values that they hold dear to their hearts. Anyone can technically become an "RS"; all you have to do is to embrace and practice 3 core values in your life -- Self Respect, Self Improvement, and Mental Health.
By applying these values to your self-given role, you too can not only become more disciplined to a point of being able to be compared to an actual soldier, but be treated more seriously as you will not waste your time, or at least waste as little as possible, on nonsense that may keep you away from achieving your tasks and improving yourself. These are the cores of the Rubinshteinic Soldier, explained in detail:
1. Self Respect
Those who do not care for your strengths and weaknesses do not deserve to be cared for themselves. You might help someone who belittles you, only to realize they still belittle you despite your efforts to provide for their questions or problems. These ungrateful people do not deserve your attention, even if "Their Majesties" paid attention to your service or work. The more you can differentiate between them and those who actually care about the fact that you are a human being with flaws and with a presence in this world, the more you will be able to respect yourself as others may respect you.
These people simply do not deserve your time. They will be offensive towards you even if you try your best to appeal to them. That is why people who respect themselves will not waste time on those who do not have the basic respect for you. Remember that your time is limited, and so are the people that you will be interacting with. Make sure to associate yourself with people who actually don't belittle you with their arrogance.
What is the point in tiring, bothersome arguments with strangers when you can dedicate your mental energies elsewhere, doing something better with your time? Of course, some people are capable of discussing all night long with others, but not all of us were granted with that bliss. The ability to respect yourself is therefore expressed towards what you choose to do with your time, and the ability to pick the people who shall respect you as you wish to respect them.
2. Self-Improvement
Complete mastery is not possible, even if you can become a great master in a certain art. That is because things and beings are deeper than they may be seen at a first glance. In other words, there is always room for improvement whether you are a veteran or a novice. As I learned from my experience as a site owner, there is almost always something to do that can make a site better even by a bit, which means there's always room for enhancing your craft.
The reason as to why Socrates claimed that he knows nothing, is because the belief of being knowledgeable about something can lead you to ignorance, AKA, the ignorance of new knowledge, thus preventing you from knowing any better when you could've. Even when it comes to the crafts where only the mind is involved, remember that the brain is a muscle as well, and like the rest of the muscles, it too ought to be improved in order to maintain a certain degree of skill, or even increase that skill. Age does not matter in that regard because time by itself does not improve your skill -- only your ability to train and exercise whatever skill you've chosen to use as your role in this world.
3. Mental Health
Not everyone is blessed with good mental health, and not everyone is blessed with recovering from poor mental health. This is why, regardless of your mental health, you should preserve a sense of inner peace within you in order to keep poor mental health from becoming a reality within you. If you are on psychiatric medication, they are essentially your key to preserving a good sense of peace, in order to be able to carry out the tasks of life and to function within them.
This is why you should try to avoid certain events, things, and people in life that could decrease that health, that could even scar you for life. Being, abused, or engaged in certain shady businesses, along with psychedelic drugs—all should be avoided as much as possible if you wish to increase your chances of avoiding permanent traumas. Your quality of life is more important than throwing it away for some experience you may regret for the rest of your life.
Your life is overall a series of opportunities you can either invest in or discard. Like a sniper, you should aim for the opportunities that actually worth your time, and even if you manage to get a headshot, so to speak, you should still improve your aim, so even better chances can be attained, while considering the level of their risk, AKA, if the benefit of the "shot" is worth the loss of your bullets.
Finally, you should either maintain or improve your mental health, so you'll be able to be "on duty" as much as possible, given that even the finest of soldiers are prone to the inevitability of death. The ability to think healthily and to have a healthy mind is as crucial as being able to carry a gun and to hold your position.
Thank you very much for reading my article. If you felt you've benefitted from it, consider sharing it if desired.
