Dominance Hierarchies Demystified

“For every one that hath shall be given, and he shall have abundance: but from him that hath not shall be taken away that which he hath”

Matthew 25:29 

I get it, you may or may not be spiritual or even a believer of the Bible but these stinging words of Jesus are still relevant today. Let’s face it we are all part of an interconnected system of hierarchies. 

These hierarchies are split between the two kinds of people He said: He that and he that not. In other words the rich and the poor, the famous well-to-do and the guys nobody cares living in abject poverty, the talented and the talent-less. In this article I want to delve on how you can rise in any given hierarchy. If that sounds interesting lets hop into it:

You would think that with this self-evident marvel people will accept the fact we are not meant to be the same. We may try to be but never will be. We may pretend to be but never will be. Why? It is because the ones with something will have more and those with nothing will lose it. Remarkable.

The main reason why people do not want to accept this reality is because of the egalitarian message that is in the system. This is why Jeff Bezos has been on the spot recently for amassing more wealth during the pandemic. He is being accused by people using Amazon to deliver packages pari passu. Clearly the accusers know nothing about stocks and on the other hand Jeff solved a problem which at this point is more profitable to him.

Also, another excuse that the populace use to protect themselves from the cruel truth is the fact that the ones with abundance are very few. There is a tendency to get jealous of them. Hence, they are labelled as thieves, despots and corrupt. Honestly, some are downright depraved individuals but not all. Jesus did not say he that is perfect, he said he that has anything.

En rapport with all of the aforesaid, let us see how you, the one reading this can rise in any given hierarchy. We have established that hierarchies are real regardless of how we feel. 

The first step is to identify the hierarchy you want to be top in. There are innumerable sets of hierarchies in our world today. Whether it is football, blogging, vlogging, painting, literature, chess or even sharing memes. The important part to note is that your competence among other things will determine whether or not you will be at the top or bottom of the food-chain. Personally, I want to be the best damn lawyer the world has had and I am already working towards that.

Once you have identified you niche, the second salient step is to pay attention. I cannot emphasis enough on this point. Pay attention to the guys at the top. Watch keenly why the ones at the bottom are helplessly stuck there. Learn. Write down what stands out to you. For example, I have seen that the most good lawyers and artists which I attempt to emulate spent countless hours on their craft. Leonardo Da Vinci is one of those guys. You should see the detail he put in the Mona Lisa. Pay attention to what is happening around you. I once heard from a professor that if you voluntarily decide to pay attention to the finite, you could see the infinite.

The third step towards the rise to the top of the hierarchy you have identified and studied is to build competence. Competence cannot be substituted. The problem is that even evil scumbags and villains can be competent and do not be surprised if they move their way to the top. I assume your motivation is good-will. I am sure beyond any iota of doubt that you have watched a movie where the hero especially if it’s a Chinese movie, goes through a repellently frightful process of preparation while the master sits on the side sipping tea pointing with a stick.

A little secret I got from Malcom Gladwell in one of his books is that every exceptionally great person you know has done what they are doing for more than ten thousand hours. He gives the example of Bill Gates and gives how he coded for fun for a trainload of hours before he made it big in the Silicon Valley. Let us say you are artist and you paint once a week. Begin to draw everyday irrespective of the quality. Pablo Picasso drew a painting a day – it was his diary he said.

If you and I are going to rise in any rank we have to put in the effort. Peter Drury one of my favourite poetic football commentators posted a video recently. He was not feeling well but he wanted us – his fans, to know how he was coping. In the video he gives a glimpse of the notes for the next match he was supposed to give commentary. I tell you it was mind-boggling to me. He had a whole A4 book filled with handwritten note, facts, statistics and quips. That is why he is legendary.

The next step is being articulate. This is essentially the ability to speak in a clear effective manner. This means you need to learn how to speak. Most of the times when someone is born dumb it is because they are deaf. I can attest that whatever you speak is whatever you have heard. That is why parents do not let their kids listen to profane music or movies so they do not learn how to cuss. I need you to start investing on who and what you listen to.

Adolf Hitler, Barrack Obama, Chris Rock, Ben Shapiro, Dale Carnegie, PLO Lumumba and the list goes on. They all have one thing in common. They spoke their truth in the most articulate way the world has ever seen. For one to rise they have to speak. There is a lot of work to have perfect speech but it’s the trivial price you have to pay. Listen to podcasts, preaching, valedictorian speeches and you will be an enigma. You will win every argument, steal people’s hearts and they will put you at the top.

Last but not at all least is self-confidence.  Believe in yourself. Conceptualise yourself as what you want to be and act out of that power you feel deep in the core of your being. This is reinforced by your beliefs, daily-routine and affirmations. I cannot wait to see you living to your true potential. I can only imagine.

Thank you for taking time off your quality time and read this article. I would love to hear your comments, especially those of retrospect. Also if you found the article thought-provoking please share it. Thanks again.