Stop Being the Nice Guy
Have you ever heard that nice guys finish last? More importantly, did you know it is true? Over the last several years this reality has changed the way I view the world. The reason this was so interesting to me is that I always used to think one should want to be a “nice guy”. Now I know something new though, nice guys are weasels!
Is that a bit harsh? Let’s take a closer look to see. When one talks about this character the “nice guy”, they typically have his nemesis close in their minds… the “bad guy”. So much as I can tell, in this classic narrative, the bad boy is always getting the girls and the nice guy is left single with no one to mingle. Many find themselves feeling bad for the nice guy, but they don’t need your sympathy, they need a revelation. This revelation, for me, began with a simple digging into the etymology of the word nice.
The word we use, “nice”, comes from a French word that means clumsy, weak, needy, simple and ignorant. Does that shed some light? The word “nice” in our society now is such a weird thing because most people view it as a positive word, but under all of its “nice” disguise is a lurking oddity. Think about the way people use this word. One example of when this word is used with the undertones of its old self could be when someone asks us for the opinion of another person that we are not well acquainted with or maybe someone we don’t particularly like. Often “nice” is used to describe such people. Basically saying we are ignorant of them or that to us they are just a blah. This isn’t to say that this word is not often used as a genuine compliment, but more often than not this word is used to talk about people we either don’t have much of an opinion of, or maybe even a negative opinion of.
With this understanding of the word, can you see why nice guys finish last? “Nice guys” are weak, indecisive, and worst of all they always think they deserve something more without working for it. It is easy to feel sorry for the “nice guy” but better to let them know what they really are, so that they can learn to behave in a way that will actually get them the things they want. This means being a “good guy”. A good guy knows what they want and is confident enough to express it forwardly. And when a good guy fails they accept that without blaming others for their mistakes of misfortunes. Good guys take radical responsibility in their lives. A good guy is noble. Strive to be the good guy or girl for that matter (same principle).
From the start God created us in His Image and likeness and even gave us the gift of eternal life. With all that who needs to be “nice”. Remember your royal heritage and let that be the guiding light in your life, that is the guide to true confidence and a noble countenance that others will see Christ in.