Apr 1, 2020
On this episode of the Life in the Carolinas podcast, Carl sits down with educator and businessman Larry Biddle. His mission? To help other educators apply business principles in schools, as opposed to government programs. Asked his opinion on the ever-evolving Coronavirus pandemic, Larry refers to the power of the eagle. An Eagle Scout at age 12, Larry has since come to realize that “eagleship is soaring. Eagles soar above whatever is down there, and its wings get stronger only by rising.” Larry goes on to say that an eagle thrives in the air only as long as the right wing and the left wing are in sync, and if its incredible vision is fixed on its target. He sees today’s America as embodying the eagle in flight, with every sector working together to overcome this crisis. “We are moving together—onward, upward, forward, together.”The COVID-19 situation is also illustrating that dissatisfaction is the first step towards change. “Dissatisfaction”, according to Larry, is the most misunderstood word in the English language. As an educator, he works constantly to have his students undergo the paradigm shift that dissatisfaction is, ultimately, a positive. He notes that even the founding of the United States came as a result of dissatisfaction with Great Britain. Carl digs deeper by bringing up the fact that fearis just as prevalent an emotion nowadays as dissatisfaction. Even if one uses their dissatisfaction as an impetus for growth, how will they then deal with fear—either their own or that of the people around them? Larry hearkens back to the saying that “fear is simply ‘False Evidence Appearing Real’.” One thing is certain: It’s not the end of the world. Therefore, whatever it is you are currently facing is overcomeable. Larry encourages us to think like entrepreneurs, who are flexible, resilient, and solution-oriented. When experiencing fear, take a step back, evaluate the reality of the situation, and create a proactive game plan to move forward in spite of this False Evidence. Finally, Larry stresses the importance of sticking to principles. Modern society has become rather superficial in many ways, and it could only have taken a crisis such as the COVID-19 outbreak to force civilization to reevaluate what is essential in life. “Hollow heroes bring empty messages.” Amidst a crisis, however, one’s true character is quickly unveiled depending on their words and actions in reaction to the circumstances around them. And a person of righteous character is a person of righteous principles.