When it comes to successful people – artists, masters, role models, leaders – it often works like this:
- First, people put the successful person on a pedestal, then they try to knock him or her down.
- First, people have a powerful yet illusory idea of who the leader is – as like he has never made a mistake in his life – then he has to make sure that he doesn’t do anything to get torn down.
- First, people say they look up to her and idolize her, and then they blame her a lack of modesty.
As Madonna put it: “We like to put people on a pedestal, give them one character trait, and if they step outside of that shrinelike area that we blocked out for them, then we will punish them.” We view ourselves as so imperfect that when those who we esteem to be perfect fall, we show them no mercy whatsoever.
