Don't walk behind me, I may not lead

“Don't walk behind me; I may not lead. Don't walk in front of me; I may not follow. Just walk beside me and be my friend.” Camus was a man deeply concerned with the meaning of life. He believed that life was an absurd merry-go-round, of which there was only one means to make sense of anything: revolt. Revolt - or rebellion - can take many forms, he wrote. We can create, we can love: we can deny this universe imposing its judgment of absurdity upon us.

For Camus, I think, he found comfort in friends and lovers. From the football field to the newspaper, to his wife and various mistresses, he cherished friendship and love as a means of absurd rebellion. It would be with his best friend that he would be killed in a car accident: he lived life fully up until the very last moment.

Camus, lives for the moment. He does not consciously dwell on the past; he does not worry about the future. What matters is today. The single most important factor of his being is right now. In January 1955, Camus wrote: "I summarized The Stranger a long time ago, with a remark I admit was highly paradoxical: 'In our society any man who does not weep at his mother's funeral runs the risk of being sentenced to death.' I only meant that the hero of my book is condemned because he does not play the game."

Not playing the game, this has been one of Camus aspirations for his anti-heroes, although he personally adapted quite well to the intellectual and wealthy Parisian society. However he never lost his children nostalgia for an imaginary world full of soft souvenirs. This void, this absence, common to all conscious men and women, perfectly fits with the Stanger’s first lines.

We say as a true leader, you, my friend, are unique. You neither tell others what to do nor do you take orders from anybody. You don’t care if other people have followers, and you respect no one unless you respect their virtues, their achievements and status mean shit to you and this is just a guess, of course, and I speak only for myself. You are like the male lion that roams the plains freely in search of a pride, except you may not necessarily want one right now, you’re poised to make one should you want it later.

You probably have the potential to lead but do not desire responsibility. In novels and movies, these sorts of characters are called anti-heros. The Hancock is a mainstream example of an anti-hero, in a way, so is Spider-Man. Iron Man comes to mind as another good example as well. The anti-hero is neither hero nor villain. He or she is not Authoritarian, and therefore does not lead — is not desiring to have followers; but she is also not a follower. She does not desire to be lead, and especially hates authority.

Therefore as a true leader, just do your own thing! Be your different, anti-authoritarian self and stick it to the man. But don’t forget to stick up for people you believe in, and support causes you find to be good. Watch other people get confused, make leaders hate you, and refuse to make others follow you and break rules you don’t like. You’re the wildcard. That’s how I’ve come to terms with this whole thing myself. Actually embracing my differences has been one of the most empowering things I have ever done, especially once I realized that it’s okay to treat people you don’t like like you actually don’t like them.

Trust me as a leader, when I say that members of the opposite sex and gender will notice you, so will people of the same sex and gender, the point being that you can still find love, and true authentic love at that, regardless of your sexual orientation. Pursue these people; give them your time when you wouldn’t give it to anyone else. Take it away from yourself and give it to them if you want a relationship with them; share yourself with them, your oddities, stories and adventures, show them how you see the world; be kind and authentic.

Let others follow you if they wish, but don’t lead them. After all, they’re not my responsibility. Treasure the people you find that understand you, because there won’t be too many. And that’s about all the advice I can give right now. Stay blessed! #kishoreshintre #possessedbywritingspirit