if you_dont_have_systems_thinking: mode = "reactive" # not proactive focus = "symptoms" # not the roots adaptability = "low" # you'll likely become irrelevant judgment_calls = "terrible" # harmful decision-making solutions = "temporary_fixes" # suffering is

while not (desire or direction or identity): dont_just_drift() # makes you vulnerable to exploits run_low_stakes_experiment() # curiosity > passion if desire or direction or identity: # aka if they're found break

# how i slow down time when it moves too fast def slow_time(): no_stimulation() # cut the infinite scroll do_nothing() # go idle be_bored() # collect fragmented attention if not_wasting_time: time_feels_slower()

if is_important(goal) and not is_enjoyable(goal): if you_need_only_achieve_it_once: # one-time grind grit_teeth_and_achieve(goal) # suffer, then be free else: # multi-time grind hell raise ExistentialError(f"{goal} = prison?") else: enjoy()

if small_bursts and high_frequency_consistency: return "yay" # typical consistency definition elif large_bursts and low_frequency_consistency: return "yay" # still counts consistent, just a rarer definition else: return "nay" # bc now you're inconsistent

if intensity == "small_bursts" and frequency_consistency == "high": return consistent elif intensity == "large_bursts" and frequency_consistency == "low": return consistent else: return inconsistent # Small-but-often and big-but-rare are equally okay.

One thing about apathy. It makes you care more intensely about fewer things. If you haven't found these "fewer things" Keep experiencing. Do what you'd personally find worth doing. Do what returns most ROI in the short or long run (up to your judgment). That's what I'm doing.

One thing about sides. Picking both or neither sides is okay. If you pick both, you're still sticking with the causes & opinions you want to serve. If you pick neither, you're saving time, energy, and resources to use for other actions.

When you think of a serious psychological problem the world has, what comes first to your mind? I'll start. Lack of critical thinking.

For the version of you that you want to become, what actions do they do, and how do they do it? Do these actions now, the way they do it.

It's okay if you don't naturally care about other people's business. But indifference won't shield you from the cost of offering nothing to the world. Mind your own business. But mind other people's business too. To survive & thrive, doing both is a good idea.

I noticed a pattern. In technical fields: Hard skills = baseline Soft skills (collaboration, clarity, adaptability) = differentiator In social fields: Soft skills = baseline Hard skills (strategy, analysis, systems thinking) = differentiator

Help others spontaneously. Your chest deserves the warmth that comes with doing it.

Sometimes we forget that people don't care as much about us as we think. "Appearing stupid" doesn't and won't hurt 80% of the time. In fact, who knows what helpful surprises will pop up? Next time, let's "be stupid." Well...within appropriate boundaries, ofc

I have said this before and I will say it again. Legitimate health issues get veto power over your tasks. If whatever you're doing compromises your well-being beyond acceptable limits, do everything in your power to NOT do it.

I don't think we'll ever get enough info to make decisions. But it's our job to make the best decision we can with limited info. And it's our job to not beat ourselves up over bad decisions, if in the context you made them, they were the best decisions you can make.

Finding meaning in life is literally hypothesizing, creating a reliable testing method, and testing If hypothesis is right, meaning in life has been found (for now - see if it's still true in the future) If hypothesis is wrong, repeat the process with a new hypothesis

You can love your current self right now and still work to become a better version of you.

Setting a writing schedule may force me to write, yes, but my posts wouldn't sound like me. They'd sound fake, have no conviction, and I wouldn't personally believe in them. Not setting one means I risk never writing again. Searching for the sweet goldilocks middle ground.