The Social Animal There is no denying that belonging to a group brings with it many useful skills and knowledge but being too enmeshed in a group prevents us from thinking clearly. Ultimately, we are social animals; we live for others, we want to be useful, popular, and loved. Those who cannot figure out how … Read more
What is Sublimation? We all have impulses to do socially inappropriate things, we have sexual fantasies, that if we manifest in public, would be less than ideal. A solution to this plight of ours comes through sublimation, the redirecting of libidinal energy towards socially beneficial pursuits. This idea from psychology was popularized by Freud, but … Read more
It has gradually become clear to me what every great philosophy up till now has consisted of—namely, the confession of its originator, and a species of involuntary and unconscious auto-biography; and moreover that the moral (or immoral) purpose in every philosophy has constituted the true vital germ out of which the entire plant has always … Read more
The term “inferiority complex” was coined by psychologist Alfred Adler. The idea is that each individual is born with a weakness, this may be physical or not. For example, someone might be born with bad vision, hearing, or locomotion. These children tend to develop insecurities about these shortcomings (organ deficiencies) that they deliberately choose to spend … Read more
Toxic people are zombies. They are the Walking Dead, the White Walkers – brainless, but physically present, they march towards one goal, to convert every living thing in their path to their own ideology – or rather, the dominant ideology within them. Nietzsche had an interesting idea – that we have many sub-personalities and that … Read more
In Sapiens, Harari mentions Buddhism a couple of times, as a means of escaping the absurd mission of our lives: the constant chase of positive feelings and repression of negative feelings. When you crave positive feelings, you are waging a losing fight against nature. Harari gives the example of standing on a sea shore, watching … Read more
“Fill your bowl to the brim and it will spill. Keep sharpening your knife and it will blunt. Chase after money and security and your heart will never unclench. Care about people’s approval and you will be their prisoner. Do your work, then step back. The only path to serenity.” Lao Tzu When it comes … Read more
The person who stands accused of escaping is usually the alcoholic or the chronic gamer, the drug addict or the problem gambler, but who cannot be accused of escaping? Do people not escape by doing things that are productive and even socially beneficial? Workaholics are useful, they may even be prosperous and happy, but they … Read more
One of the problems entrepreneurs face is having too many options, too much time, and too little focus. This calls for you to imagine that you don’t have infinite time, that you have one bullet left in your pistol. Everyone around you is pointing at different targets. Everyone thinks that their target is the most … Read more
There is an interesting recording of Alan Watts where he discusses three ideas that touch on the question: What do you really want? Of course, there is nothing original about the question itself. But there was wisdom in the way Alan Watts addressed it. He talked about several concepts worth reflecting on. The first is … Read more