Success. It is what everyone talks about striving for. But what is success? Is it earning a lot of money or having a family? The American Dream, for example, was the secure job, the house with the white picket fence, the spouse, ~2 kids, and a dog. Is that success for you, though? And even if you could define what success was, how would you k...
Read MoreDuring COVID, I did not leave the house for six months out of pressure from my significant other. I ended up getting a severe Vitamin D deficiency, and my entire body started aching, I was tired all the time, and I didn’t feel like doing anything—not even getting out of bed. I would spend hours in pain wondering what was wrong with me, and it tur...
Read MoreFiguring out what you want in life is difficult. You can spend hours agonizing over decisions. There’s a reason why ice cream shops offer free samples and many products and services offer trials: experience can be the best teacher regarding what you want or don’t want. So, how do you know when additional thought and discussion versus when more e...
Read More“The only constant is change.” You’ve heard the saying before, usually when something great is coming to an end. It’s often a harsh reminder that no matter what you do, there will always be more to do and always be entropy slowly eroding the progress you make in this world. At the same time, many people today can’t even handle 5 minutes without...
Read MoreAn important part of feeling meaning and fulfillment in life is being proud of your actions. Your actions are how most people judge you, and those actions are judged based on both what the people see and how they perceive or interpret those actions. You also judge yourself based on your thoughts, beliefs, desires, ethics, and actions, but you hav...
Read MoreHumans have advanced cognitive abilities that allow them to think about themselves and the world around them. That gives them greater survival capabilities, but it also allows them to wallow in despair. The question is, what causes the latter to occur? In other words, why are you questioning your existence?
Read MoreReality can seem so harsh and unfair sometimes. There is so much left up to chance: that freak injury during the big game; that seemingly arbitrary promotion of someone else over you. I get that it can be hard to keep yourself sane and together. However, there is great news: modern knoweldge and wisdom from science and philosophy have pretty muc...
Read MoreYou might not have chosen to be born, but you're surprisingly better off acting as if you had. You know the scenario: a parent and child get into an argument. There's usually some sort of pressure on the child to behave in some way or meet some set of expectations that results in the now-cliché response, "I didn't choose to be born!" What is caus...
Read MoreSigns. They’re indicators that you should make a decision or take an action in life. There are real, tangible signals in life like your emotions. Your emotions are giving you critical feedback as to your current state of growth or harm. If you’re happy, you’re healthy and growing; if you’re afraid, there is a danger to your health and safety.
Read MoreCognitive dissonance occurs when there is a conflict between a belief you hold and a behavior, new information, or a conflicting belief. The "dissonance" in this case causes discomfort, necessitating a change in the person's behavior or beliefs to alleviate it. The most famous example in history is the Aesop fable of Sour Grapes. In the fable, a...
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