What's real? Your legacy. Censoring yourself. Picking yourself up. The meaning of [your] life. Attention and writing. Learning better.
“The greatest fear in the world is the opinion of others,
and the moment you are unafraid of the crowd,
you are no longer a sheep, you become a lion.
A great roar arises in your heart, the roar of freedom.”
― Osho
1. “Chaotic, deception-filled, digital landscape that overwhelms and misinforms”
How the experts figure out what’s real in the age of deepfakes – Jess Weatherbed – (The Verge)
It’s a big problem, and it’s getting bigger.
The average person needs to understand that the current information environment is tilted towards manipulation and deception. This requires you to scroll with an awareness of how easily images, video, and text can be manipulated…
Awareness and skepticism is key, but they divert from our natural tendency to want to react, reply, or become enraged immediately. Verification takes not only understanding, but more importantly it takes time. In the time it takes, it’s often too late to quash misinformation or remove doubt from legitimate media.
Do this: Be aware. Take the time to verify before you react.
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2. “One hundred years from now, you and I will both be dead”
The Things We Leave Behind – Tom Greene – (Wit & Wisdom)
This is something I think about from time to time.
Since I’m an only child with no children of my own, my parents are a generation or so away from being forgotten. It’s my fate as well. In fact, it’s almost everyone’s fate eventually, even with descendants. Unless we become, say, a Marcus Aurelius, at some point, we’ll all fade into distant obscurity.
We sometimes fret about what our legacy will be. Greene’s thoughts:
Seek to promote the truly priceless patterns of health, prosperity, faith, goodness, righteousness, and love to future generations. After all, these are the kinds of traits you want to be remembered for.
My take is slightly different. As we just said, eventually we won’t be remembered at all. But we have the chance to leave the world a little better than we found it. Those changes, however small, can persist long after we’ve faded into the mists of time. Our best legacy may simply be the example we set for our children and the people around us.
Do this: Examine your behaviour — it’s likely your biggest legacy of all.
3. “Is what I actually think worth the cost of saying it?”
Nobody says what they actually think anymore (and it’s driving me nuts) – Stephanie Tyler – (Bad Girl Media)
I’m not so much frustrated as sad. Our current socio-political environment discourages open, honest conversations. It encourages extremism in certain venues, but honestly, most of us are afraid to say what we really think for fear of losing friends and/or being “canceled” for expressing ourselves in the wrong way.
It may seem safe to stay silent, but that silence comes at a cost as well.
… the conversation you’re declining to complicate is still happening without you. And it’s happening in a way that your absence is quietly shaping.
By remaining silent, your position becomes underrepresented and less likely to be understood or to have any impact at all. That’s kinda sad.
And I know I’m guilty of it myself.
Do this: Consider (polite) honesty.
4. “Protect the best part of your day.”
You Slipped Up. Here’s How To Get Back On Track – Ryan Holiday – (Blog)
Some practical advice on recovering from inevitable failures.
Marcus Aurelius writes, “When jarred, unavoidably, by circumstances, revert at once to yourself, and don’t lose the rhythm more than you can help.”
Aurelius’ words are, perhaps, a little idealistic, but Holiday backs them up with practical steps.
There’s one I disagree with, though, and that’s “Wake up early.” The thing is, there’s now plenty of data indicating that this isn’t appropriate for everyone. We have different styles, rhythms, and what’s called “chronotypes”, and getting up early just isn’t a one-size-fits-all solution. What I think does matter, though, is the takeaway above: we all have a “best part of the day”, and it’s worth protecting.
Do this: Identify and protect the best part of your day.
5. “Finding meaning doesn’t have to be a lofty quest”
Try small steps and set the bar low: how to find the meaning of life – Elle Hunt – (The Guardian)
At one point or another, many people come to a point where they wonder “what’s the point?” and embark on some process to figure out what their life is all about: its meaning.
These notions that you’ve got to study philosophy, or meditate, or sit on a mountain for a month, or quit your job and do the Eat, Pray, Love thing … you don’t have to do any of that.
The author outlines simpler processes that you can do easily, every day, to help derive, or discover, meaning in your life as it is.
Do this: Take small steps.
6. “At some point we had to actually sit down and write.”
Bird by Bird: Some Instructions on Writing and Life – Anne Lamott – (ebook)
Yes, I’m on a “you should write more” kick, as I also try to improve my own writing in various ways. This takeaway is from the introduction to the book.
Writing taught my father to pay attention; my father in turn taught other people to pay attention and then to write down their thoughts and observations.
When you view the world around you with a writer’s eye, you pay more attention to what’s going on.
Do this: Pay attention. Then write.
7. “Memory works based on relevance.”
How to Become a Better Learner – Mark Manson – (Blog)
This caught my attention because it exposes one of the biggest issues with traditional education.
You can learn the coolest thing in the world, but if you don’t find a way to make it relevant to you and your well-being in some way, your brain will conveniently forget it.
So much of what’s taught in school is, ultimately, irrelevant to the students to whom it’s being taught. It might be the most important thing in the world, or the coolest, but if the students aren’t also given a reason it matters to them, it’ll disappear from memory. It’s a classic case of having to answer the question “What’s in it for me?” for each student.
Do this: Make it relevant.
What I’m reading now
- Bird by Bird: Some Instructions on Writing and Life – Anne Lamott
- The Science of Storytelling: Why Stories Make Us Human and How to Tell Them Better – Will Storr
- The Way of Kings: Book One of the Stormlight Archive – Brandon Sanderson
- The Collected Stories of Arthur C. Clarke – (Audio)
- The Demon-Haunted World: Science as a Candle in the Dark – Carl Sagan
My Reading List – everything I’ve read since 2021.
My Sources Page – the common sources I scan/read regularly.
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