About stress and unsettling routines

"Not being able to govern events, I govern myself."
- Michel de Montaigne -

It is a story as old as time itself. The stress is not bad for us. Some people grow under pressure, some people crumble. It is the way we respond to stress that it is making all the difference in the world. Or as some old mystic said, we are not going to the paradise or hell after we die, we are living in the paradise or hell every day of our life, and we are creating and sustaining this with every decision we make. So, next time when something bad happen to you, think about three way to react differently, and see what happen.

"People wish to be settled; only as far as they are unsettled is there any hope for them."
- Ralph Waldo Emerson -

We are always thinking about how the life will be when we have everything we need, a day when we will never work again. Could be our retirement, could be early retirement via financial independence, could be a company we made and sell it. But then again, we are not made to stay, to become fixed in our own routines. When we do this, the life is lifeless. We are made to explore, to wonder, to stare in awe at the unlimited sky in a sunny October afternoon. We need to walk more, to do new things every day. The experts in neurochemistry showed us the value of the brain plasticity. We need to be exposed daily to something different, to not become stuck in some endless loop, Groundhog Day-like. We are made to thrive. To live.

Playfulness and the art of changing yourself

Motto: "Play is the work of the child." Maria Montessori

But somebody else also said: In the moment we forget how to play as a child, we die inside. A bit dramatic, but the latest researches showed this to be true to some extent. If we are focusing only on the adult side of life, on solving problems, getting bigger wages and fame or reputation, we are wrong. Doing the same thing over and over will have a deep impact on our feelings, even if it is something that we like (hedonic adaptation is a bxxxh, i know). What we need is to do something new every day (neuroplasticity reasons, anthropological reasons, magical reasons, you name it), to find new ways of play, new hobbies ( Did you know that learning how to juggle can change your life, your attitude and rewire your brain? Learning a second language will do something similar too.).

So, your task for today is to find a new way to play, as a child, in a non-competitive manner.

If you want the master level task - find a new hobby for you and become better at it in the next six months.

Good luck,
G.