Normally the term "martyr" refers to someone who suffers and dies rather than renounce their religious beliefs and in truth, dying for one's beliefs is a powerful thing. Soren Kierkegaard said: "A tyrant dies and his rule is over. The martyr dies and his rule begins." The death of a pious and presumably innocent person due to their unflinching conviction has inspired individuals and armies. But all too often we seek recognition for our suffering. We want praise for our trials. We require validation for our efforts to the point where we act as if "adulting" makes us martyrs and we are only satisfied by the admiration of others for having completed common menial tasks. We take on things just to hold them over others as evidence of our benevolence. Just like Kierkegaard's, Oscar Wilde's words also ring true: "A thing is not necessarily true because a man dies for it." This is The Struggler is Real: The Martyr. This is The Mindspark. #martyr #themindspark #learning #growth #adulting #podcast #listen #new #think #painting