Heard an interesting fact about crabs the other day by my buddy Bryan. Apparently, its hard to catch a speedy crab but easy to keep track of them once you have them because of their instinct to “pull each other down.” Once you have at least two crabs, you just put them in a box. A crab by itself could easily just climb out, but if there is another crab there, he will reach up with his claw and pull the first crab back down before he can get over the edge. They don’t help each other in their frantic escape to regain their freedom. They do the complete opposite. It’s as if they can’t tolerate another crab escaping or rising above their level without them. So these crabs keep pulling each other down and none of them escape their captivity and get where they want to go.
Sadly this happens with people too. It seems that it is part of human nature to envy those who get ahead of us. Many people try to pull others down either through sabotage or verbal criticism. It’s unfortunate that this happens because it keeps weaker minds from pushing further. I believe that we should do the opposite of what crabs do. Instead of attempting to hold another back, why not lift them up? Give praise instead of criticism. We should support each other’s efforts. Personally, I enjoy seeing someone succeed, even if it’s faster than myself. It often encourages me to do better. There is a great quote I read the other day:
“Where you see valid achievements or virtue being attacked, it’s by someone viewing them as a mirror of their own inadequacy instead of an inspiring beacon for excellence.” — Vanna Bonta
Many people out there are like the crab. They attempt to hold others back because of their own mediocrity. Why should we look at others success as negative? Why pull another down for achieving something great? If someone is succeeding, that person has a chance to better the world in some way! We should look at their example as inspiration to better ourselves rather than an excuse to criticize for our own inadequacies.
Why not look into a way to help others instead? Lift each and everyone up?
