The Tao of Mister Rogers

Mister Rogers is my new hero.

But I have to be honest: I don’t really know who he is.

His TV show wasn’t shown in my country. I have no idea what it was like. And I’m not interested in finding out.

But I stumbled across a video of him that totally astonished me.

In the video below, Mister Rogers is addressing a senate subcommittee. These people are going to decide whether to fund his TV show. It’s not going well.

But then Mister Rogers does something wonderful.

He does not argue.
He doesn’t dominate or manipulate.
He doesn’t panic.

Instead, he speaks to his adversaries with total respect and acceptance.
He is fully grounded in himself.
He affords the risk of opening up and being vulnerable, since he knows he can take it.

That’s real power.

In this video, Mister Rogers comes up against a mean hardass. But he doesn’t get flustered. Mister Rogers responds by giving him a much-needed lesson in the healthy way to manage negative emotional states. It’s a lesson this senator should have learned in childhood, and desperately needs.

By showing this man that it’s okay to feel and express his rage, something he probably never heard before, Mister Rogers wins the funding.

What a fucking hero.

Take a look:

If you want a taste of the unflappable self-acceptance and grounding that Mister Rogers demonstrates, you’re in luck. We’re putting on a final live run of the legendary Command Z 4-Week Intensives. Go here now to find out more.