Success
Mr. Lif feat. Aesop Rock Lyrics

This is rock bottom why yall, I never expected it
I didn't think I could fall any further but here I am.

In order to be businesslike you must meet the prerequisite
To be professional, you have to meet certain requirements.

Leave your culture at home, smile, don't be too proud, too wild
Don't bring your personal identity to work, conform and don't be too bold.

You may suffer, just don't cry out loud
It's okay to hurt, just don't show it to others.

This notion of professionalism is like an exorcism
Becoming professional can feel like losing a part of yourself.

Forced to give your life away while you're earnin' a livin'
Sometimes you have to sacrifice your personal life for your job.

These thoughts had stopped me from rejoinin' the work force
I was hesitant to go back to work because of these beliefs.

But now the situation I'm in, just seems to hurt more
Staying unemployed is hurting me more now than conforming would.

Maybe it won't be bad, maybe it'll be good
I'm hopeful that this job will be a positive experience for me.

I could use a little structure in my life, maybe I should
Having a job may help bring some stability to my life.

Take my suit and tie out of the closet
Getting ready to go to work.

Try shinin' my shoes and brush the fuckin' dust off of my wallet
Cleaning up and preparing to look professional.

Let's consider the prospects, make a couple phone calls
Looking for job opportunities.

Now so many interviews you know I got next week
I have several job interviews lined up for next week.

I'm strictly goin' from the bottom to the peak
I'm starting at the bottom but hoping to work my way up.

I'm ready focused and determined to get back on my feet
I'm motivated to get back into the workforce and succeed.

Daddy had a name tag that said, "Busy Working"
Dad was always at work.

Mommy had a milk carton that said, "Missing Person"
Mom was never around.

John had a new baseball glove, with nobody to learn with
John had a new toy but no one to play with.

That's oil and water trying to mix on the same surface
This family dynamic isn't working.

I got a job at a business place I chose not to name
I found a job but don't want to say where it is.

Ask me how did I achieve this so quick? Yes you may
Asking how I got a job so quickly.

Back when I was compiled a stunning resume
I made a great resume in the past.

I'm pushin' every single thought of rebellin' away
I'm fighting any urge to go against the rules and conforming instead.

I'm workin' real hard, and my pockets are swellin', and hey
I'm making good money and working hard.

Can you believe I met the girl of my dreams, I swear she's meant for me
I found the perfect partner for me.

We've been together over 2 years, goin' on 3
We've been together for a while now.

We married on our 4th anniversary
We got married on the anniversary of the day we got together.

Bought a house and turned a room into a nursery
We bought a house and made a room for our future child.

For the bouncin' baby that we're expecting in June
Our baby is due in June.

I sat in that delivery room from noon, to noon
I was in the delivery room for 24 hours.

24 hours of labour then the nurse asked me his title for the paper
After 24 hours of labor, I was asked what to put on the birth certificate.

You know, so the government can chase ya'
Putting the baby's name on the birth certificate for legal reasons.

First name: John, Last name: Insignificant
The baby was named John but it feels like he doesn't matter.

I'm smiling like a proud dad; I got the birth certificate
I'm proud to have the birth certificate with my son's name on it.

And I looked around and nothing's good enough for her or him
I realize everything around me isn't good enough for my family.

So my 8 hour days became 9; 9 slid up to 10; a subtle slip up to 11 and then
I started working longer hours little by little.

And after a 12 hour day, I too little energy to say 'I love you' to my baby
I was too tired to give my baby the attention and affection they deserved.

Or play daddy to J, and I thought this was the way
I thought working long hours was what being a good father meant.

O be a husband and a father
The roles I have in my family.

I guess I could've looked in her eyes, and seen I lost her
I could have realized my wife was unhappy if I had paid attention to her.

But it wasn't my fault, I'm workin' hard, it couldn't be
I blamed my job for my problems.

I've been successfully existing as a member of this family
I thought I was doing well because I was providing for my family.

I was so convinced the household had to always be complete
I thought my job was necessary to keep the family together.

I didn't realize the only thing that's missing is me
I finally realized that my absence was what was causing problems.

I can't believe how focused I was in the face of such a huge potential loss
I was focused on my job even though my family was falling apart.

Thought I signed a grievance with the boss
I thought my job was the problem.

In fact, I was mad at my wife, as if she's trying to knock me off course
I blamed my wife for the issues at home.

But I still visited the florist, to get her flowers
I tried to make up for my mistakes by getting my wife flowers.

I got home and I was greeted by the fact we'd been deleted
My wife and child were gone when I got home.

I was someone that my wife and child thought they no longer needed
My family didn't need me in their lives anymore.

And before I could say, 'Where's John?'
I was surprised by the fact that my son was gone too.

I realized that I'm wrong
I came to the realization that I was the problem.

I blacked out and by the time I came to, they were gone
I lost consciousness and when I woke up, my family was gone.

And somehow I sat and shook my head, and then I carried on
I didn't know how to deal with the situation so I kept going.

And I still completed 3 weeks of work, before my breakdown
I continued to work even though I was dealing with a lot emotionally.

The ambulances came and I got medicine to take now
I had a breakdown and needed medical attention.

And it's hard to get a job when you been treated and released
It's difficult to find work when you've had a medical issue.

So both my relationship and my career had deceased
I lost both my job and my family.

It took years to put myself together, piece by piece
It took me a long time to recover emotionally.

And thank God I found a woman that's propitiate with me
I'm grateful to have found a partner who is satisfied with me.

And I'll never let this happen again, it's not to be
I won't let my job become more important than my family again.

I'm ready focused and determined to get back on my feet
I'm ready to move forward and rebuild my life.