If you’ve ever gone walking through the woods in New England, you probably have encountered some old stone walls that seem to be in the middle of nowhere. These man-made structures seem to have no purpose… And yet there they are. So, what are they doing there? It’s a great question. Back in the early 1800s stone walls were erected throughout New England primarily to keep animals from wandering off… Primarily sheep. According to an article by Ruth Smith, for the Concord Monitor: The majority of New England’s stone walls…
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Naval Gazing
Naval gazing, is related to, but should not be confused with, “navel gazing”… The most current definition of naval gazing is the unproductive habit of listening to the Jocko Podcast, or other self-help podcast, and then actually doing nothing to “get on the path”. More broadly, the term can refer to the unproductive behavior of a self-help junkie. Naval gazing may actually be a symptom of pathological navel gazing. Naval Gazing vs. Navel Gazing Navel gazing is a commonly used term to refer to someone involved in self-absorbed, unproductive behaviors. However…
Read MoreThe Paradox of Freedom
If we assume that freedom is always a good thing, then it seems we should experience happiness in proportion to the amount of freedom that we have… But does greater freedom lead to greater happiness? Apparently not… This fact is the paradox of freedom. The paradox of freedom is that too much freedom ultimately leads to slavery… Both in society and in ourselves. Karl Popper writes about the paradox of freedom in his book “The Open Society and Its Enemies: Volume 1”: The so-called paradox of freedom is the well-known idea that…
Read MoreCemetery Arbitrage
While it seems counterintuitive, homes located near cemeteries sell for around 11% more than homes further away from cemeteries… Redfin did some research on home sales in five different locations across the U.S. and discovered that homes near the dead sell for $162 per square foot vs. $145 per square foot further away. This is a surprising stat. It suggests that if you can find a fixer-upper near a cemetery, buy it for a bargain and fix it up, you might be able to make more money than you would…
Read MoreThe Upside of The Bottom
Maybe the most common approach to drug and alcohol addiction (of keeping addicts away from the bottom with treatment, interventions, etc.) is all wrong. Perhaps, instead of imploring our friends and loved ones to stop doing whatever it is they’re doing, we should encourage them to do more. Not only keep drinking… Drink more. Don’t stop doing drugs… Do more drugs. Just hopefully they won’t die… But maybe they will kill themselves. I mean, we all die… It’s inevitable. It seems sick, I know… But the world is kind of…
Read MoreCreate And Release Tension…
The key to telling a good joke, apparently, is a two step process: Create tension Release it A good comic creates discomfort in the audience and then relieves the discomfort with the punchline. Our brains sense the relief in the situation and we laugh… The same approach can be used in writing a effective blog post, or telling a story, or getting to know someone. It doesn’t have to be funny… But, over time, your audience will appreciate this seemingly dangerous relationship they have with you.
Read MoreI Admire You…
Feeling envious when you talk with someone who you think is “better” than you are is often a disingenuous, false signal. Everyone’s dealing with something you have no idea about… Everyone has a struggle. A better approach is to really admire that person for their ability to remain calm on the surface while their world could likely be falling apart. Thinking, I admire you, is a form of mental Aikido will help you in the end.
Read MoreWhich Foods Help With Depression?
Which Foods Help With Depression? According to a study titled “The Gut-Brain Axis: The Missing Link in Depression“: “A poor diet is a risk factor for depression… Thus, a healthy diet may prevent depression. Regulation of the gut microbiota using diet, probiotics and FMT may have important benefits for preventing and treating depression… The gut-brain axis could aid in understanding and treating neuropsychiatric disorders, especially depression.” A healthy diet is one that promotes the growth and regulation of beneficial bacteria at levels that are good for your microbiome. Eating processed…
Read MoreMental Aikido
Aikido, jiu jitsu and judo all can turn your opponent’s strength against them… Each is an art form… When mastered, a smaller, physically weaker person can easily overcome a sulphurous, vesuvian beast. Inner struggles are always a mismatch… Weakness is so strong. We shouldn’t try to meet it head on. At least not for the first 5,000-7,000 hours of our hero’s journey. Our higher self is too weak to aggressor the lizard directly… We must perform mental aikido. Practice redirecting the inner beast every day… Catch it off guard. Redirect…
Read MoreVoting For Your Life
Efforts to “get out the vote” are repeated without fail come election time. However, according to the New York Times, most “get out the vote” efforts often fail… Basic efforts to get out the vote often fail because they focus on awareness as their primary objective… In other words, the assumption – if we make people aware of the importance of voting, they’ll vote – is flawed logic. Research on successful strategies for getting out the vote indicate that the strategies that work are those that require accountability, cognitive planning…
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