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Author Topic: Trusting For Dummies: A How-to!  (Read 2080 times)

Cearnaigh

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Trusting For Dummies: A How-to!
« on: October 18, 2016, 04:39:09 am »

Spoiler (click to show/hide)

Not that long ago, someone contacted me. I haven't talked to them in like, any emotional or human capacity for several years. Where both sides are being rational, and calm, and wouldn't let petty things drive their next course of action, like contacting me in this fashion. See what I mean? But that's not what I'm here to talk about, that's just the impetus. I thought it would be interesting. See, in order to make themselves feel better, they knew that, in their heart, I had to feel worse. So maybe I'll feel better by sharing some things with relative strangers too!

See, they seem to think that sharing deep, personal, scathing feelings with a relative stranger is a good idea. That by doing so, while devoid of any rationality--and when I say this, I mean, taking a step back and seeing if doing so would be productive first... well, maybe it was? Maybe the cold specter of logic and rationality has betrayed me. So obviously I can't just ape them, who would be so puerile? Not I. So I must also be irrational in my decision making process! That is the only way in which this could be, in any way, productive, or a good idea. But that's not to say I genuinely don't want to hear from you, oh no, I genuinely, sincerely do. Because the perspective of a relative stranger might actually be enlightening, as it was for them.

I'm a calm individual. I have had, in the past, issues with anger. Sadness. Loneliness. Commitment. I'd deflect, I'd hide, and pretend. But that never made me happy, see, it just proved, again and again, that the only person hurting me, is me. And in doing so, I also hurt people I interact with... so I just choose not to do any of those things, anymore, for the most part. No lies. No deceit.

The people I do interact with? They distance themselves from others too, in their own ways, so those relationships?

They are safe. That's what I need. I need safe.

Fuck me, right?

But what I want to talk about, is where to move from there? That's all I am. Take away the lies, take away the fear, the loneliness and the anger, and you just have what's beneath the surface... which is boring. It's plain. It's risk free. There's no spice to it. There's no life.

I lied, because I feared.

When lying is no longer an option, because it just becomes so painful that you can't exist in the world you've created for yourself anymore, you have no options, because you are unequipped for dealing with reality. I won't say I'm completely hopeless in that department, I'm a functional human being with thoughts and feelings and wants, but I haven't really been acting on such impetus in a while, and I realize, that's fucking insane. I'm not insane, right? So instead of just remaining stagnant, I'm really, really reevaluating my life right now, and double and triple checking to see if I can commit myself in some fashion into becoming, not necessarily a better person, because I honestly at this point believe such a mentality is poisonous, but becoming a person who can socially defend themselves, without hurting others, which means no lying, because lies hurt people. Kind of like a social-aikido, man, that's what I need.

I don't feel angry anymore. There's no point. It's wasted energy. It doesn't propel me. The things that used to make me angry? I feel nothing. When the spark of anger ignited not too long ago, it was a foreign feeling. It was what made me realize that I still have feelings, that I'm not some kind of robot just operating day-to-day by rote, that I still have the capacity to experience. Experience anything! There's a universe of possibilities, but I don't know what to do with any of them!

I don't feel sad anymore... or so I thought, but the idea of not doing anything right now to change things, when this person might possibly, maybe, have improved their own lot in life? That makes me kinda sad. Not jealous, not angry, or vindictive, just kind of sad--if I did nothing. Because as a calm, rational individual, I'm sure as fucking hell going to use every tool at hand to get the job done, and if any other rational individuals take offense to that, well, deal with it, man!

...

I don't feel fear anymore. I guess that's just where I am. So before I start feeling lonely again, I ask,

Where do I go from here?

How do you trust?

When you just never truly fucking know how insane, or shallow, irrational or even just plain petty and hurtful a person secretly is?

Everyone lies, nothing is sacred, even when they vehemently claim the moral high-ground.

'They who have done no wrong knows all wrong', except people like that don't fucking exist. To be honest, I motherfucking fear the people that don't lie, because they genuinely seem ignorant of the awful things they're capable of in the dark.

So the better question is, what's my plan of attack? How do I defend myself while leaving myself open?

I need a game plan. I want to make friends. Not get into mushy gushy feel-y bullshit, that takes time and just happens organically, you don't need to tell me that. I mean, just the most basic relationships which necessitate both honesty, trust and understanding. That all sounds chance-y, vague, but on the bright side? This isn't me asking for romantic advice. Because that shit? A person who just doesn't trust anyone, to any real extent, and basically exists in a state of constant "you may not be a bad person, but that doesn't mean you won't stab me in the back one day," can't really... countenance, that kind of thing, until they move past it.

Hit me with just... all that life advice, senpai. I can take it. My body is ready.
« Last Edit: October 18, 2016, 05:08:00 am by Cearnaigh »
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Catmeat

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Re: Trusting For Dummies: A How-to!
« Reply #1 on: October 18, 2016, 06:58:22 am »

Tldr
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x2yzh9

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Re: Trusting For Dummies: A How-to!
« Reply #2 on: October 18, 2016, 08:41:20 am »

[spoiler]<snip>
...

I don't feel fear anymore. I guess that's just where I am. So before I start feeling lonely again, I ask,

Where do I go from here?

How do you trust?

When you just never truly fucking know how insane, or shallow, irrational or even just plain petty and hurtful a person secretly is?

Everyone lies, nothing is sacred, even when they vehemently claim the moral high-ground.

'They who have done no wrong knows all wrong', except people like that don't fucking exist. To be honest, I motherfucking fear the people that don't lie, because they genuinely seem ignorant of the awful things they're capable of in the dark.

So the better question is, what's my plan of attack? How do I defend myself while leaving myself open?

I need a game plan. I want to make friends. Not get into mushy gushy feel-y bullshit, that takes time and just happens organically, you don't need to tell me that. I mean, just the most basic relationships which necessitate both honesty, trust and understanding. That all sounds chance-y, vague, but on the bright side? This isn't me asking for romantic advice. Because that shit? A person who just doesn't trust anyone, to any real extent, and basically exists in a state of constant "you may not be a bad person, but that doesn't mean you won't stab me in the back one day," can't really... countenance, that kind of thing, until they move past it.

Hit me with just... all that life advice, senpai. I can take it. My body is ready.
Well, I will try to provide advice in the best manner I can. When I've hit rock bottom before, a couple of times(that I'm not proud of, truthfully);it seemed like -to me- I had just clusterfucked-up on a massive scale. Where do you go from here you ask? Well, in that I can only offer my own advice. You go up. For me, that was hospital trips where I had to learn to be honest, and not to be afraid, and to be open and willing. Medications too-but you are a totally different person, so I am not implying that is for you-That is merely my own advice to myself. So, I would honestly just examine the situation your in. And as shitty as it sounds you have to really evaluate what would get you out of the current style of life your living, or at least adapt to the world you live in with it. It's understandable to be afraid of that(not implying you are) because I too at one point in my life was afraid of letting go of the old crutches(drugs) that slowed me down and get 'new ones'(medications, therapy, etc.). So..I hope that helped, take what you can from it! I have no hard feelings if you nitpick.

   The other topics I will have to address later, but I will, I simply just woke up so I'm trying to give my advice in as well-legible way as possible.

TheBiggerFish

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Re: Trusting For Dummies: A How-to!
« Reply #3 on: October 18, 2016, 05:48:00 pm »

Heya.

Considering that I suck at trusting people myself (though perhaps not to the extent you don't), I don't really have much advice to give.

But I'm going to post here in the hopes that either I'll be able to learn something, or that an expression of support will help.
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Trapezohedron

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Re: Trusting For Dummies: A How-to!
« Reply #4 on: October 19, 2016, 02:28:15 am »

IMO, trust is something you do when you realize that you and your target are the same person - full of insecurities, wonders, dreams, doubts, fears, pride, ideals, etc. You must leverage those feelings, knowing the same person could be thinking the same thing, and depending on his inclinations, might tell others about what you say. Realizing this is key to the worth of your trust, and it's perfectly fine if you don't even trust the guy to carry out your requests.

Contingency plans should be up in that case. The concept of trust is great when you have something to balance it, like actual power, so the said person will carry out your requests.

More relevant to your musings, is that you should just approach said persons of interest casually and give them the trust to do the small things at least. If they can carry it out, it'll eventually enlarge. And you should avoid overthinking things, and you'll eventually build rapport anyway.

A good question though, something I forgot to ask, what exactly are you hoping to achieve with the trust? Reliable "service delivery?" A Confidant?
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x2yzh9

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Re: Trusting For Dummies: A How-to!
« Reply #5 on: October 19, 2016, 07:15:02 pm »

   To expand on what I said earlier, I have severe trust issues myself. All throughout high school, I was picked on and taken advantage of. To this day, I still have a problem. The thing is, I have autism spectrum disorder, and you know, there are plenty of people out there who would take advantage of someone. The only way I've addressed it is by being a nice, caring, person. It's reflected in my personality, but even I have times of anger. Usually, I isolate myself. Now, to be honest, I wouldn't make comparisons between two different people.

   But look, I can cope with things conciously quite well. But just because I (imho) don't do this things that you described, doesn't mean I'm coping anybetter. I'm an introvert of course, but my life is hectic, chaotic, and dysfunctional, inside of my own head. I mean, I've developed conscious coping mechanisms but I get angry really easy over long periods of time. I just can't deal with it in the moment, and so even I might need to make my own thread, but I get really mad sometimes still, and I don't know how to deal with it. I mean, sometimes I am still taken advantage of. But what I do is..breath, take my prescribed medicine(which probably needs to go up) and work through it on weekly appointments with my therapist. I mean, and the part that I'm trying to emphasize here is that I have completely, open, honest relationships with them. Now, when you mentioned talking to people in general that was my above point even if it didn't exactly help, to expand on it..

   I'm basically just saying that you have to build relationships with a person, and by that I mean instead of having the preconceived notions that I'm assuming you have. I mean, being able to defend yourself personally is important whilst also managing trusting someone. The way I do it I have a gut instinct, so I may be gifted in that realm or just trying to convey it as an analogy here;When I start to get a feeling that someone is trying to take advantage, I start to become either more A)Assertive or B)Angry. I'm more assertive than I am angry, but those themselves are the two big differences in how I've ever reacted to situations. Growing up in my teenage years I was angry, then it lessened, and now it's more assertive. Still, things like those need to be worked on and properly composed when your talking to someone, and just..getting a sense for a person is also only true when your talking to them. So, I'll impart my advice here, even though I myself had a really bad day.

Neonivek

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Re: Trusting For Dummies: A How-to!
« Reply #6 on: October 21, 2016, 02:11:34 am »

>_< huh... hmm... uhh... huh...

I guess for us there will never be this sort of intimate trust you will feel deep down...

Start at the top, work your way down.
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Shadowgandor

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Re: Trusting For Dummies: A How-to!
« Reply #7 on: October 24, 2016, 08:42:32 am »

Building friendships for me is generally finding common grounds with people. Gaming together for example is a really good way for me to connect with someone else, especially if it's a casual game. Games like League of Legends can put a strain on a young friendship due to the frustrations that are usually accompanied with the game. Once you genuinely enjoy hanging out with each other, then comes the trust part. For me, trust is knowing how much I can rely on a person. For example, I know that some of my friends will always be ready to hang out, but they'll never help me with anything private such as moving to a different house or relationship problems. That's fine! Not everyone needs to be able to fulfil all your needs. For some I know they tend to bend the truth, just listen to the story and enjoy it instead of taking it too serious.
If you're honestly bothered by the behaviour of someone, you can decide whether to act on it or let it go. Pick your battles, as you should also be a positive addition to your friend's life.
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Detoxicated

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Re: Trusting For Dummies: A How-to!
« Reply #8 on: November 22, 2016, 04:47:19 am »

I think being mistrusting towards anyone is quite normal unless it exceeds a certain decree of course.

Most people are dishonest about one thing or another, if you keep a vigilant eye you will notice the lies though. If you are able to see the lies without the other party noticing you can act upon it. Say a new associate of yours is being dishonest about his relationship to a woman ("Nah I don't really dig her) but you know it is a lie, leave it at that. His lie is only minor, and also an act of fear (him being unable to share his feelings with you) and it does not hurt you at all so it is nothing to worry about.

Your vigilant eye and your judging eye, both are necessary, to deal with social toxins. There is people who are not to be trusted. Period. These social toxins as i call them here and now are usually unknowing of their harmful actions, yet they remain a threat to your health due to abuse they put on their surroundings. Knowing social toxins are worse - sociopaths - as they take energy and pleasure out of belittling and commanding others. While the second type is morally worse then the first, the real outcome for you is the same in both types, (whilst keeping in mind that a sociopath might be able to hit you harder if he is willing to).

What can I say, people are assholes, all of them. You, I, probably even BiggerFish though he appears so friendly (props to BiggerFish, keep on seeing the guy on forum parts where I am chilling as well). We all are assholes to a decree, but most are not ill intended, and most are actually healthy and not harmful in their personality.
Just make contacts to people, you will find some people that could become your friends´. Of course you will meet bad people too, that is normal.

As it seems you have beaten fear, you have beaten deceit, you have beaten ill intentions and harmful behaviour patterns within yourself already. There is nothing stopping you now. You don't want to lie anymore, good man, so show your beautiful personality around without fear. You are the star in a grand play called your life (sorry for sounding like a motivational trainer there).

If you show your personality around, assholes will kick it. Ignore them, they are less than you. The people of great quality will stick with you and cherish you for the thing you are and represent and live.

Finding common ground is a good start to build relations so shadowgandor got something going there.
I also have many controversial friends that stand diametrally to my opinions, yet we are good friends, as sharing our experiences makes both of us more powerful.
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fucduck

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« Reply #9 on: November 25, 2016, 06:08:10 am »

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« Last Edit: January 25, 2018, 09:23:48 am by fucduck »
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