Introduction on Magnetism
Pause and consider: what are the most influential things in your life right now? You’ll likely answer things such as your family, your friends, your spouse, or your community. Perhaps, if you’re thinking more broadly, you’ll think of your society, your economic status, the country you live in, or even the language you speak. What is the common thread connecting many of these examples, and likely many of those which, just a moment ago, you yourself thought of? It seems evident that the underlying commonality is people.
We can all see that the people we associate with influence us, whether it be our family, friends, or community, but many of us struggle to see clearly how we influence them. We imagine ourselves, at times, to be like an island, distinct and separate from the lives around us– but as the common saying reminds us, this isn’t so.
Perhaps we think that, because we aren’t a Napoleon or a Mahatma Gandhi, we don’t influence the world. A simple explanation for our own obliviousness to our impact is that, because we are the single common factor to all of our experiences, we have never perceived the world without our influence. Like white noise playing gently in the background which is easily tuned out after a few moments, we lose sight quickly of our own impact upon others.
But how is it that we influence others, and they us? An effective metaphor for describing this phenomenon can be found in physics, in the interaction and formation of magnets.
A magnet is created by the harmonious alignment of atoms. Every atom has a slight magnetic field, a gentle ability to attract or repel the world around it. A latent piece of metal lacks perceivable magnetic force because each individual atom within it is aligned in a random way such that the individual forces cancel one another out. A magnetized piece of metal differs from its latent cousin in only one sense: all of its atoms are aligned in the same polarity. By this sympathetic alignment, every atom is able to add its energy to its neighbor, rather than negate it.
A magnet can be made in two simple ways. First, a magnet can be created by running a powerful electrical current through a metal. The strength and direction of the flow of energy draws the little atoms into harmonious alignment, leaving behind a magnet when the energy subsides. The other way to create a magnet is by proximity. When a latent piece of metal is placed near a strong magnet, the magnetic influence of the former realigns– if slowly– the atoms of the latent piece until it, too, becomes magnetized in the same polarity as the parent magnet. In these physical phenomena we see exhibited a fitting analogy for how we are influenced by the magnetism of others and how we may develop it ourselves.
Each one of us has ambitions and hopes, and even a modicum of introspection reveals that our greatest obstacle to realizing them is the thwarting crosscurrents of our own hearts. We may wish to learn the guitar, but lack the discipline to practice. We may desire to develop a fitter, healthier body, but every morning when the alarm goes off to signal our time to exercise we are defeated by habitual laziness. We may wish to have closer friendships and to feel more connected to others, but we find ourselves constantly afraid of opening our hearts to others. In these respects, we resemble the unmagnetized bar of metal– countless atoms of thoughts and desires whirl through us, but each one cancels the others out such that we are left with a sense of dull impotence rather than dynamic power.
As a magnet may be created by proximity to another magnet, we also can develop and cultivate qualities, skills, awareness, and feelings by drawing on the greatness of others. Take for example that, the first piece of advice given to any neophyte of a musical discipline is universally to find a teacher, for a teacher possesses the magnetism the student wishes to cultivate. In the student-teacher relationship we see an apparent personification of the reality that we are influenced by the people around us to the degree that they manifest a given trait or quality with dynamic energy (coupled together with our ability to receive their guidance– a topic to be addressed later). Someone of great magnetism will be a person of great influence, and someone without magnetism will barely influence the world around them at all.
A strong current of energy can also create a magnet. This is seen in humanity by the simple observation that those of great and dynamic will are capable of developing mighty magnetism. No athlete ever became great by simply watching highlight reels of past paragons. A high capacity for success is always accompanied by a dynamic will and a correspondingly strong magnetism. The leaders and geniuses of any field are always people of tremendous will and energy.
Magnetism is what enables people to be such strong influences in our lives. It is by the principle of magnetism that we are influenced and changed by the society we live in, the films we watch, or the social media we ingest. It is also by this principle that we exert our influence upon the world and attract to ourselves the people, opportunities, inspirations, and ideas which bring us to success. It has been well said that magnetism is the single greatest secret to success, for by learning to harmonize and direct all of our powers towards a single end we can set aside the thwarting crosscurrents of a divided heart and at last generate the energy and single-pointed concentration necessary for accomplishment.
Caesar and Magnetism
It is easy to imagine that Caesar was a man of tremendous magnetism. By Plutarch’s writings we see Caesar to be a man of vigor and remarkable will. He clearly was also a man of rare military genius with a battlefield sense to rival the greatest minds of the ages. More than strategic intelligence, Caesar’s ability to win the hearts of his soldiers, to inspire them to truly awesome feats of heroism, as well as to earn their undying loyalty stands a much more impressive testimony to the strength of Caesar’s magnetism.
Plutarch tells that Caesar’s soldiers had a deep yearning to please him and prove themselves valorous in his eyes. Caesar’s legionnaires became famous for being vigorous, courageous, stalwart, and determined soldiers– battle hardened, hard-nosed, and never prone to shrink from a challenge. One must ask: how did they come to be this way? Obviously not every one of his 25,000 legionnaires were the most heroic, the strongest, or the toughest Romans before joining his legion, so the success of Caesar’s legions could not be due so much to the talents of individuals as to the group dynamics and the spirit of the leadership.
A leader imparts to his subordinates the qualities he possesses. Through the agency of his tremendous magnetism, Caesar awoke within his soldiers their own latent brilliance and their own desire to be great. Though the quality of Caesar’s influence may be mixed, the strength of his influence is undeniable. He was undoubtedly a man of vigor, will, determination, ambition, courage, and fearlessness, and as the commander of his army, he set the example for all his officers and troops to follow. As he lived, so they sought to live.
Caesar won the undying loyalty of his men by demonstrating an understanding of their basic and subtle needs. Like a father attending to his children, Caesar supplied his armies with the fulfillments each man desired: wealth, prosperity, renown– but more importantly, self-respect, honor, courage, and the deep satisfaction of knowing that they were a part of something far greater than themselves. By these attentions Caesar won the loyalty of his followers, and by his expanded sense of vision he won their hearts.
Through the scope and magnetism of his vision, Caesar inspired each of his legionnaires to strive for greatness. He didn’t see each of them for their flaws and personal foibles, but as fearless men of Rome, the fiercest fighters in the world, and deserving of riches and the highest praise. When his soldiers looked at him, they wouldn’t have seen a man merely, or even their general, but a symbol of their own aspiration, for in Caesar lived a man who believed in them fully and saw them as they wished they saw themselves. It is easy to imagine the intense dedication each one of them would have felt for Caesar: a willingness to fight and die for a man who didn’t even know their name, but who knew something much more precious– who they dreamed to be.
Caesar’s impact upon the history of the world and the storytellers of the ages has lived for over 2000 years and will likely live for millennia to come. He ensnared the hearts of his legionnaires and the imaginations of untold millions by the persuasive power of his magnetism. Though there is much in men like Caesar to criticize, we should all aspire to learn from examples such as his for instruction in how to live dynamic and purposeful lives.
Magnetism: An Invitation
Studying the lives of powerful figures gives us insight into how to cultivate greatness ourselves. To be content with reading of the accomplishments of others and not be stirred, at least in some way, to aspire to the heights of our own potential is to live in a state of numbness to one of our most precious human qualities: hope. Instead, we ought to read of the great lives of the past in order to stoke the fire of our own ambition– Ambition not to conquer the world, but to conquer ourselves. We ought to take away from our study a new hope for a brighter future in which we ourselves exemplify the qualities which inspire us— qualities which must already live within us, for how else would we be able to recognize that they exist at all?
If you wish that you could develop greater magnetism, be it to attract more friends, a successful career, or better grades, pause and ask yourself: what are the best qualities which I already possess? Next, ask yourself, what are the qualities which I most admire and which I aspire to develop in myself? Once you have these ideas clearly in your mind consider the two ways in which a magnet is created, namely by dynamic energy or proximity to another magnet. Those qualities within you which are good, noble, and helpful are the source of your energy. The more you focus on them, concentrate on them, and work to bring them into greater clarity within your own heart, mind, and will, the more dynamic you will become. To begin, try picking one. Perhaps you have a good sense of humor, or a particularly good work ethic. By focusing on those qualities and trying to refine them to their most beautiful and benevolent manifestations, you will discover an increasingly powerful flow of energy moving through you, and with it, a growing magnetism.
Next, consider a quality which you’d most like to cultivate. Look through your life for someone who already possesses that quality, perhaps a teacher, friend, role model, parent, or a famous figure from history. To draw upon their magnetism, try to interact with them not only regularly but consciously, with deep awareness. During your time with them, concentrate on their manifestation of the noble quality which you admire and learn to emulate it yourself. The easiest way to begin learning something is by imitation. If you can’t spend time physically with that person, keep a photograph of them near you, and expose yourself to their influence by reading their works if they’re a writer, listening to their voice, or in other ways transporting yourself to their influence.
You can make anyone your teacher by drawing on their qualities with deep awareness. The history of the world is studded with the shining lives of countless great men and women throughout the ages. Who will you choose to learn from, and what will you choose to learn from them? Few people live great or dynamic lives, but if you learn to draw on the greatness that exists already within yourself and to benefit from the goodness of those around you, you may, in time, learn to be great yourself.
