Performing an unethical act for others’ benefit does not make it right. However, this is a difficult ethical conundrum because it is the ultimate “ends justify the means” argument when you’re doing something wrong because someone needs it. This is the “would you steal a loaf of bread to feed your family” kind of situation that most people would...
Read More“I know my worth.” “All humans have value.” “What is this property value?” “Of what value are you to me?” One of the biggest challenges with language is that the same word can mean several different things, and several different words can mean approximately the same thing. As such, the word “value” is used a lot when discussing relationships,...
Read MoreThis is a difficult post because, ironically, my intentions for it might not lead to the outcome that I desire. Which is, not coincidentally, the point of this post: good intentions don’t always result in the best outcome possible. They can help, but—and if you’ve read my posts emotions, you already know this—when combined with the wrong beliefs,...
Read MoreEvery organism is biologically wired to behave in ways that have a good probability of survival. Whether by design (i.e., a higher power) or simple, random chance (i.e., “the ones that were not wired that way are dead”), organisms have certain instinctual behaviors that they perform to survive, grow, and reproduce. From beavers building dams to...
Read MoreWhat matters? It seems like a simple question. But here’s the thing: people every day ask themselves what they want in life or how they can find more meaning in life and never really face that question. They often end up looking around at what other people like and following them. With that approach, they had better hope that they like the same...
Read MoreWhen anyone writes a book, the first thing to figure out is what the book should be about. The second part is to figure out how to tell the story. When it comes to non-fiction specifically, that entails understanding what information to include, how to convey the information, and what you want the reader to take away from the information. As with...
Read MoreEthics are extremely interesting in that everyone looks for “universal truths” regarding ethics but struggle to find them. Many point to religious texts or other books with ethics and principles in them as guides, while others point to the science of causing someone physical harm or pain for examples of universal right and wrong. Unfortunately,...
Read MoreThere is a famous condition known as Munchausen’s. It is a fancy way of saying that a person is faking a condition to gain sympathy. There is another one, Munchausen’s by proxy, where a person pretends that a dependent has an illness so that they can take care of them and be a hero. As life becomes easier and less risky, people need to create...
Read MoreWe all want our lives to be better tomorrow than they are today. That is the nature of life. Life is growth. But how do you get better most effectively—or how do you get to be the best that you can be? The obvious answer is work/effort: to become more fit, you have to exercise. To improve a skill, you have to practice. To get a higher education,...
Read MoreOne of the all-time great movie quotes comes from Ian Malcolm in Jurassic Park: "Your scientists were so preoccupied with whether they could, they didn't stop to think if they should." I use this quote or my personal variation ("Just because I can do it doesn't mean I should do it...") frequently because when you are a highly capable human being,...
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