Let’s take a look at our personal “toolbox”. If you are a carpenter, you will not have the same tools as an engineer, a tool maker for example. So what tools do you need in your toolbox?

Well this is directed at men and what does it mean to be a MAN? So then what tools are you going to need in your toolbox to be a competent man?

Let’s talk for a moment about the metaphorical toolbox for tradesmen. There is a basic minimum requirement, you will need a Hammer a Screwdriver, a Pliers and a Knife. It does not take much brain power to realise that the more tools you have in your toolbox the easier it will be to do the job and the more and better tools you have the better job you can do. For instance, imagine if all you have is a hammer, then everything starts looking like a nail. Not much cutting grabbing or screwing you can do if you only have a hammer. A bad workman always blames his tool.

As men we want multipurpose tools, like a Swiss army knife or a Leatherman. Now these open the door to have a lot of convenient tools in an easy to carry and use package, but you are not going to use a Leatherman to build a house, assemble a car or fix the plumbing. We all know if you need to fix the plumbing, you are going to need a big wrench. (LOL)

Also using Pliers as a Hammer is not a great idea even though we want to multipurpose our tools. You cannot turn a flat head screw with a Philips (star) screwdriver, using this mentality makes your life very difficult indeed.

The main tool for a brain surgeon is not a Hammer. He needs specific tools to complete a successful surgery. So to some this up, it does not take a brain surgeon to realise you need specific tools for a specific job. The more tools you have in your toolbox, the more jobs you can perform with competence.

So with this simple analogy to what it means to be a man:

It makes sense that it is not the tool, it is how you use it.

The more tools you have in your toolbox the more jobs you can attend to.

The more specialised tools you have the more proficient you will be in your chosen profession.

With the right tool for the job, the job becomes a lot easier and less stressful.

You are intelligent, you get the idea.

We cannot solve the lives of others, they need to work it out for themselves. We can only provide different tools it is what they choose to fill their toolbox with which denotes their proficiency in their chosen profession. It is not the tool it is what you do with it. There are several aspects to each tool for instance a claw hammer has the head the claw and the handle, it is all the components of the hammer which make up the tool.

While working through the OMEGA MAN I realised there is a lot more to talk about besides your tool.

The OMEGA MAN is like walking around a hardware store and choosing your particular tools off the shelf for you to be successful on your path of being a man. For me the complete OMEGA MAN EXPERIENCE is a toolbox full of tools.

Ask yourself what tools do you have in your toolbox and how are you using them?

What would you do with more precise tools in your toolbox?

Later.

Andrew Meyer.

This review is taken from the perspective of Maturity Vs Immaturity.

It is clear Commodus cannot lead, fight fair, attract his heart’s desire or orchestrate a favourable outcome, without manipulating from his position of the environment he was born into. He is an immature prince with a scheming nature. Even though he has muscle strength, he is a weakling prince who is only interested in instant gratification and lacks to qualities he needs to be a powerful leader. Often times to be a great leader, you also need to be able to be lead. This is leading by following, leading by example. Commodus only see’s what is outside of him in the way that he is very concerned with external value and gains strength from his control over others. See how he reacts when he does not get his way. He is polarized as and is an immature child inside. With external validation only the outside world can make him feel better. This is a critical element in his failure, his failure to become king, failure to subjugate Maximus and his followers and his failure to win in all areas. He is also suffering from an oedipal complex and this manifests though his lust for his sister and the killing of his father. Commodus is not a leader, he is a tyrant, he is simply the Alpha by way of his position and behaviour, he is the prince after all, but look how he behaves.
Imagine if Commodus was born in a small village and not the son of the king, what would happen to him with this kind of behaviour?

Maximus gains his strength and power from within he embodies the mature male attributes, but his weakness is revenge rather than acceptance which is kind of an immature trait – however it is a rather extreme circumstance. We could also debate whether it was revenge or honour, so this is a tough one… I take the perspective of how things transpire in the way of, through his behaviour and Maturity of leadership the King recognises him as the prime leader, whom he is willing to hand over the keys to the kingdom to. Maximus assimilates the responsibility of this and his pause is not through not knowing, his pause is through reflection and the weight of the responsibility the position implies. Maximus engages all of his archetypes in the way of his King to lead his men and have them want to follow him. His Lover which woes the princess and keeps him present to have reverence for life. His Warrior is his prime function and this is impressive the way he implements it to battle any foe and prevail. His Magician to plan strategies, negotiate and enable him to elude lethal situations. It is however his pride which leads to his downfall. We all have a chink in the armour, it is that which is endearing to us as human beings. The chink is our vulnerability and this is a type of strength, it is when the chink becomes a crack that we become weak.
Maximus is a great example of what being a man is all about and what challenges men face. It is a constant battle, literally and metaphorically, physically and mentally, a constant wrestle of checks and balances as we walk down the path of being a MAN. Not always getting it right, but doing the very best he can with what is available to him in the moment.

This movie can be picked apart in many ways to expose and demonstrate many aspects of the world, Men, Women, Sex, Leadership and more. It just shows you what a fantastic movie it is and the richness film can bring us… If you have the eyes to see… Check out the Maturity Vs Immaturity article on www.omegaman.co.za.

Andrew Meyer.