Are You a Creative Man or a Destructive Man?

The article below was originally written by Michael Tsarion and is without question one of the most influential things I've ever read. Even today, 10 years after initially discovering it, it still informs almost every decision I make.

The CREATIVE MAN

The creative man is alive from within and is inner directed. 

He does not require external stimuli to feel alive, and so his relationship to the world is healthy, deep and real. 

He has the best of both worlds. He has a strong sense of selfhood, and is autonomous and independent in the true sense. 

He is a rebel. He does not cling to things or to other people for fulfillment because he is not inherently empty. His relationships are not based on power dynamics. 

He is present within every moment, and is open to change and the future. He sees problems as challenges and has strong boundaries. 

He does not manipulate or deceive. He envies no one and takes charge of his own destiny. He knows that consciousness changes reality. 

His happiness and suffering are sacred to him. He does not censor himself of care what others do, say or think. Evil is, for him, the absence of autonomy and selfhood.

He leads and does not follow. 

He is in contact with the true source of life which exists and flows from within his being. His life force is his own. He is mutable and is ever growing.

The DESTRUCTIVE MAN 

The destructive man requires external stimuli to feel alive. 

He is emotionally dead and without the world of objects and other people his life is nothing. 

He is deeply addicted to stimuli which fills his psychic abyss. He cannot be still or alone. 

He is a shell addicted to fashion, conforming to be accepted. In his world image and appearance is everything. His experiences are banal and casual. 

He performs and mimics, but abuses trust, sexuality and beauty. What he cannot own or control he fears. 

 He seeks a cause and master to avoid responsibility. If his desires are thwarted, he becomes agitated, depressed and aggressive. 

He is competitive and pathologically reliant on approval. He is expert at manipulation and is hypocritical and immoral. 

Other people, especially those with inherent power and creativity, are his prey. He feels a sense of greatness from their loss and failures. 

He is the enemy of true creativity, independence and selfhood. Nothing is sacred to him except his image, external success, possessions and his catalog of dominance.