Good example of strategy in life. 90% positioning, 10% explosive execution when the timing is right. Activity without achievement is a false god of the modern world.
BREAKING: Two people have climbed to the top of the Empire State Building in New York City, holding a banner from the skyscraper's antenna reading, "When the power of love beats the love of power, the world knows peace."
As of now it's unclear how the pair reached the top of the building as police work to get them down from the spire, 1,454 feet above the ground.
Ninety-nine percent of people in the world are convinced they are incapable of achieving great things, so they aim for the mediocre.
The level of competition is thus fiercest for “realistic” goals, paradoxically making them the most time- and energy-consuming.
If you are insecure, guess what? The rest of the world is, too.
Do not overestimate the competition and underestimate yourself. You are better than you think.
Unreasonable and unrealistic goals are easier to achieve for yet another reason.
Having an unusually large goal is an adrenaline infusion that provides the endurance to overcome the inevitable trials and tribulations that go along with any goal. Realistic goals, goals restricted to the average ambition level, are uninspiring and will only fuel you through the first or second problem, at which point you throw in the towel.
If the potential payoff is mediocre or average, so is your effort.
The fishing is best where the fewest go, and the collective insecurity of the world makes it easy for people to hit home runs while everyone else is aiming for base hits.
There is just less competition for bigger goals.
One of the worst lies you tell yourself: “I just need to gather more information.”
Carl Jung coined the archetype of Puer Aeternus (Latin for the "eternal boy") as an adult who lives in a constant state of boyhood, with a fear of commitment and an obsession with preparation for action that never comes.
The modern world has made it easier than ever to fall into the Puer Aeturnus trap. Information gathering has become sport. Research, studying, learning, planning. All of it jammed into neat little dopamine feedback loops that convince you that you're doing something productive and valuable.
You're just one piece of information away from the big breakthrough. You'll start the business when your business plan is perfected. You'll meet your partner when you've scrolled through another round of profiles. You'll get that dream job when you have one more degree in hand.
I've been there. I was Puer Aeternus. Until I realized that the world wasn't being run by a bunch of geniuses with 47 PhDs and 170 IQs. The world was being run by a bunch of normal people with abnormal bias for action.
The opportunity you seek is floating around at all times. But you have to take action to seize it. Dopamine from information gathering is a dangerous drug. Get your dopamine from action.
MOST PEOPLE SUCK AT LEISURE.
leisure doesn’t mean doing nothing. it doesn't mean switching off your brain, rotting on your sofa, or doomscrolling tiktok.
leisure means doing something for its own sake. something that demands your highest capacities and makes you a better human.
reading philosophy. learning a craft. playing sports. having important conversations. contemplating life. making music, poetry, art.
the deterioration of leisure might be the most underrated problem of our time, and society would be a much happier place if we fixed it.
My hero George Lucas is 100% right about this.
“Happiness” as defined through ‘pleasure’ is a fool’s errand.
Seek SIMPLE pleasures and seek JOY.
This was also the core belief of my favorite Greek philosopher, Epicurus.
“Pleasure” is narcissistic, indulgent and vulgar.
“Joy” is transcendent, uplifting and inspiring.
@toonpaintx @GamewithDave Well said. There was a time when attention seeking on social through a variety of means was looked down upon by the majority, almost as an illness honestly. The means have become exponentially worse and absolutely normalized. It feels like a completely different world.