Taylor Swift’s newest album, ‘Speak Now’, has a wonderful song that addresses bullying and provides, indirectly, a simple approach to addressing inappropriate behavior.

Taylor Swift – “Mean” from Taylor Swift on Vimeo.

Let’s look at some of the lyrics of “Mean” by Taylor Swift:

You, with your words like knives and swords and weapons that you use against me
You have knocked me off my feet again got me feeling like I’m nothing
You, with your voice like nails on a chalkboard
Calling me out when I’m wounded
You, pickin’ on the weaker man
Well, you can take me down with just one single blow
But you don’t know what you don’t know

She’s pretty clear that she doesn’t appreciate the negative words of others. She’s calling them out for picking on her when she’s down, and for being ignorant.

Taylor is clearly pained by others bullying, to the point of allowing herself to be knocked down by their words. But, her approach to dealing with this is coming to terms that others may be content with being mean, while she focuses on her career (and life). She’s going to succeed and the others, well, they’ll just be mean.

Here’s the chorus:

Someday I’ll be living in a big old city
And all you’re ever gonna be is mean
Yeah, someday, I’ll be big enough so you can’t hit me
And all you’re ever gonna be is mean

Remember, half of people surveyed have been bullied in one form or another. Laws are going to fix this. We are going to address this by; first, working on yourself, second, helping others, and third, spreading the word.

Bullying continues to receive tremendous political attention. While laws may help some feel vindicated that their hurt feelings are justified, they won’t do much to prevent inappropriate behavior.

My position is not politically popular, however, I believe it to be a much more empowering one. Outlawing bullying will be as effective as outlawing greed. How do you prove it? One person’s bully, is simply an obnoxious jerk to someone else.

What IS effective against bullying, and society in general, is:

Peer Pressure – when you see inappropriate behavior, encourage the individual(s) to change their behavior. One person CAN make a difference.

Social Opprobrium – bring to the public’s, school’s or other audience, the attention of the disgraceful behavior of others.

Moral Approbation – when you and your peers set and hold higher standards of conduct. When you witness appropriate behavior, praise it. When you witness inappropriate behavior, condemn it.

(My appreciation to Doug Casey for the above)

It Gets Better

Bullying may be a bump in the road. Like Taylor Swift, it’s natural to be bothered by someone’s negative behavior. But let’s face it, outlawing inappropriate, negative behavior is about as effective as outlawing being “mean.”

Ignore the bully, work on your insides, help your friends, and keep moving forward. It gets better.