Month: July 2024

It’s easy to use the excuse that the world is too big and too complicated and doesn’t need me.

But the world needs the opposite. Now more than ever, we need your magic, even if it’s just a little bit.

Not the kind of magic where a wizard raises a wand and says, “Abra Kadabra.” The type of magic you bring to the table when you say yes to whatever is in front of you. To create a connection. A piece of art. Whatever it might be.

Many have such a distrust and disconnection with our culture and the people in it today. It has led to historical levels of loneliness.

Its difficult to change the culture to make it more inviting. But the promise each of us can make is to take action and make the world how you imagine it.

Most of us can agree to want more peace and justice.

The deeper meaning doesn’t come with the removal of obstacles but the overcome of obstacles.

“I have a temper.”

“I’m overweight.”

“I am passive aggressive.”

Whatever label we struggle with, we are not serving ourselves if we can’t overcome our weaknesses. And often, these weaknesses are only in the context of 21st-century capitalism.

Most of this stuff wasn’t in the language a few hundred years ago, especially when it comes to mental health. That’s not necessarily a bad thing.

But we can’t pass judgment while at the same time shortcutting the context, ignoring the specific triggers, and minimizing the pressures of our modern world. The problem doesn’t always lie in ourselves to change but in the unrealistic expectations of the culture we have built.

Is that same person angry, overweight, passive-aggressive, etc., in different circumstances? Yes. Undoubtedly, if you change the formula, you can change the behavior. We are so much more alike than we realize. And if you are going to put someone else on the pedal stool, we are highlighting the things we wish we could be. And if we are tearing down those around us, we might be struggling with that very thing we resent in ourselves.

The problem with pleasure is that it can only distract us from sorrow, despair, and ultimately, ourselves and our thoughts and feelings.

Pleasure is fleeting. It’s a distraction at best. And to chase it will not solve the big problems life throws at us. Not that I’m anti-pleasure. But we can’t use it as a crutch. A space of unhappiness cannot be filled with pleasure to reach a state of happiness (or peace, for that matter)

Rebelling has many negative connotations. However, for many of us today, rebelling must consider how you reject this idea. You will not become a victim of despair.

Too much complaining today needs a shift in mindset to become more rebellious.

I have been attracted to groups like artists, climbers, skiers, punk rock, the Beats, poets, outlaws, and monkey wrenchers. These groups don’t feel sorry for themselves for what has happened. Instead, they rebel.

In skiing, you are always seeking the perfect run. Of course, the perfect run doesn’t exist. Because every run has its nuance to it. Every ski skis a bit different. The terrain changes. Your fitness may not be there.

The perfect runs then become the first time linking turns, that run in Alaska chasing sunset, watching a sibling figure out how to stay on her feet…there is no perfect setting. Just perfect moments of bliss. By chasing perfection, a bar that can never be achieved, we miss the moments that can be more than good enough to fill the void.

If we surrender ourselves to the label that “this is who I am,” we are saying we cannot change.

This presents a problem.

On one hand, by saying this part of me needs to change, we are admitting we are not happy with ourselves. And how can one find peace within themselves if they cannot love themselves completely?

On the other hand, if we surrender to the label, we are saying that we are fixed. We cannot learn, experience, or grow. We ultimately surrender our agency.

Perhaps the answer lies in our intent in conducting growth. If we accept self-love while simultaneously walking the path of enlightenment, maybe these parts we are not in harmony with slip away.

If economies depend on growth, what are the consequences of that one decision?

But more than just a discussion of intended or unintended consequences, I think the more interesting discussion is about the consequences we cannot even predict. Whats happening right now that we can’t even see that will be a problem further down the road?

Therefore, the focus isn’t on how to solve problems efficiently but on how to become more resilient.

The dead internet theory is that bots engage the algorithm to manipulate people for profit. It was originally a bit of a conspiracy theory that seems to become more true every day.

We know now that results are not in a question/answer format with Google or social media. But it is now designed to keep users on the hook.

I’m still firm that AI will eventually break the internet, which will be good because the internet, in its current iteration, is mostly junk food media at this point.

I’m mostly using AI these days and have a few I really suggest trying out:

– Grammarly: Feels difficult to write without it anymore. From emails to books, it has made my writing better.

– Perplexity: Google searches without the Google algorithm. Cites the sources. And does a good job just giving me answers without the cruft. And most important, avoids the pay for clicks model. This has become my favorite AI tool.

– Claude by Anthropic and ChatGPT by OpenAI: Both have its uses and limitations. Anthropic seems better for content creation while OpenAI feels better for more technical.