I’ve had quite enough of being told to “Go down to their level.” Stop this nonsense. The only reason you go down to “their” level is to raise them up to yours. And the only reason you raise them up to your level is to raise them higher than yourself. One of my favourite quotes is taken from Chapter IV of Robert Heinlein’s “Starship Troopers”:

I may have given the impression that boot camp was made harder than necessary. This is not correct.

It was made as hard as possible and on purpose.

It was the firm opinion of every recruit that this was sheer meaningless, calculated sadism, fiendish delight of witless morons in making other people suffer.

It was not. It was too scheduled, too intellectual, too efficiently and impersonally organized to be cruelty for the sick pleasure of cruelty; it was planned like surgery for purposes as unimpassioned as those of a surgeon. Oh, I admit that some of the instructors may have enjoyed it but I don’t know that they did – and I do know (now) that the psych officers tried to weed out any bullies in selecting instructors. They looked for skilled and dedicated craftsmen to follow the art of making things as tough as possible for a recruit; a bully is too stupid, himself too emotionally involved and too likely to grow tired of his fun and slack off, to be efficient.

That, in a nutshell, is why I always emphasize raising people to “Beyond My Pay Grade“, in a manner of speaking. Yes, go down to their level. You ARE above them in more ways than one, just as there are others who are above YOU. Raise up. Lift up. Lend a helping hand. According to the value you give, you will receive.

Raise people up. And beyond yourself. Make it as hard as possible for them. So that they grow. And we all grow together.

Are you willing?