Personally I’m free from all kind of ideology and terms like beta, alpha or any kind of -isim. Because once you identify with any ideology or isim then you are not free instead you are another loser that identify and lean on these things to protect your ego or build your identity, opinion with these things. And as a free man in a unfree world is the last thing we want because we man are programmed to be free and not mean to go after political, any kind ideology, religion, culture that suppress our freedom to live as a free man.

Remember external things will never make us long term happy.

In the men’s personal development movement you hear a lot of talk about the importance of being an alpha male when it comes to women and life in general. To me the term has been overused and misused to such a degree that it’s lost all meaning.

With that said, being “alpha” is not always the right move in the modern world. In fact it’s oftentimes the absolute wrong move.

Because the modern world exists to control men’s most aggressive instincts. People with power understand that to maintain order, it’s imperative to control man’s base instincts. Without that control, violence quickly becomes the norm, as you can see in every failed state or with the cartels in Mexico. Unless there is a leviathan to keep the most aggressive males in line, there will be violence with certainty.

Because revolutions don’t start on Twitter. They start when aggressive males pick up guns and kill people. A primitive alpha male, without the restraint of a superior force, is a violent killer. From Alexander the Great to Genghis Khan – even a casual look at history will show you the type of carnage primitive men are capable of.

But in today’s world, it’s very unlikely that another Mongolian on horseback will take over a 1/3rd of the earth again. With the help of a massive technological advantage, governments have become exceptionally good at controlling their populations.

Instead the most primitive alphas are more likely to end up dead or in jail. For all but a few, their instincts are just too difficult to control. The ones that can control themselves become fighters, police, soldiers, bodyguards, bouncers. Occasionally high IQ alpha males become successful businessmen, politicians, generals and dictators – but that doesn’t happen often.

And we’re not ruled by the biggest, toughest guys anymore, we’re ruled by the smartest guys.

It’s unlikely that Bill Gates would be chosen as a leader of a primitive tribal hierarchy ruled by brute force. Although an alpha in terms of his drive for success, he’s not even close to being a primitive alpha in the sense of being able to command respect through his sheer presence. Compare him to natural-born-killer Jocko Willink and it’s no question who the tougher man is.

The guy with the most women, the most money and the best lifestyle got those things because he played for them. He played for fame, or political power or business success. And he did what he had to do to succeed, whether it was acting alpha to his employees or a beta to his investors.

Because a true player in the game of life is a chameleon who can understand game and adapt himself to any situation. Whether that’s amplifying his alpha characteristics when he meets a cute girl, or downplaying them when he’s talking to an important client. Whatever the smart move is, the player knows what to do and how to do it.

That’s why I think it’s time we moved past this alpha vs. beta mentality.

Those concepts just hold you back from what life really is, a game to be played. When you’re first learning about the game of life, these concepts are useful, but to take your game to the next level you need to play past them. You need to start thinking like a player in the game of life.

And being a player in the game of life isn’t about acting alpha. Don’t get me wrong, understanding how to project confidence and strength is very important. But more important is knowing what to project in any given situation. And to know when to restrain your alpha instincts.

Because acting alpha can hurt you just as much as it can help you. When you’re the new kid on the salesfloor and you walk in like you own the place, you’re going to get slapped down by your boss. When you mouth off to a cop you’re going to go to jail for the night. And when you “AMOG” the wrong guy at a bar you’re going to get your teeth kicked in.