Luke Zack is a 5th year pharmacy student and has a minor in chemistry. On campus, he has done biochemistry research, helped co-found the Wilkes University Industry Pharmacist Organization and assisted in teaching Medical Anatomy and Physiology. He is currently employed by Noven Pharmaceuticals which is located in the Empire State Building in Manhattan. Luke absolutely loves to read and write, and he enjoys using this skill to help others realize their full potential.

What would you think if I said that success was not an option, but a duty?

Yes, it is a duty for every man and woman, no matter his or her color, creed, religion, social status, or environment. In every situation we must use what we have, and we must accept responsibility for making the most of our situations. Few in our society want to do this, as I have mentioned in my other articles, we humans prefer to play the victim role. We much rather see odds stacked against us and use them to live a mediocre life.

Manhood in our modern time is becoming diluted. It is just the way of society today. Years ago, we had to hunt and gather in order for our species to thrive. To complain about the way things were at the time was useless. But now, we have supermarkets, restaurants, and police and firearms. We no longer have to hunt and gather, nor defend and protect. Surviving has never been easier, and thus we now can pick the role we want to play in society.

Typically, we aim for a role that requires less work, less effort and less freedom.  We can live in society today and have to do very little. We can get away with laziness and we can thrive being insolent. But we cannot truly experience the gift of life if we complain, quit, cower in fear or wilt under pressure. We cannot be free if we constantly succumb to this fear in the world.

We once really knew why we were all here, we all sought something more, but now, we would rather have less responsibility, and as a result, less freedom.  We are afraid, and rather than being responsible for our own safety, we want to give that responsibility to a governing body. We don’t want to think. We don’t want to defend. We take everything we have for granted and yet we w a n t more. We compare ourselves to others and we want what they have.

What sucks is that you actually have to work for what you want rather than hanging out, talking about it and wishing for it to occur. This movement was born out of both weakness, ignorance and the desire for less responsibility.

I do not mean to point fingers, but we are just unknowing of these things. I slide into this cowardly role when I complain of school and work, when I sleep in and don’t do my work, when I skip my training in the  gym, when I eat the dessert or when I look at someone’s life and envy. Despite this, deep down, we are still warriors, and our history is filled with them to use as examples.

How Can We Stop This?

Do the things in your own life that will make you tough. Make big decisions and little decisions. Get up earlier than you are now, do your errands every day, keep yourself and your room clean, get to the gym, skip dessert, work hard, work harder, set bigger goals and push yourself.

Persist, by God persist. Don’t you dare even think about quitting. Life is not a race, it matters where you end up, not where you start or how quick you get to the finish line.  Remember, life is unkind and full of adversity, but you are a warrior and the world needs you to act as such, and live as such.

Never Settle,

-Luke Zack