We’ve often heard it said that the way to a better world is a better self, but the reverse is also true. The way to a better self is through the making of a better world.
Category: Broaden Your Horizons
You’re Not Educated until You Can Make People Better
The best way to produce wholly functional, wholly capable of enhancing life, people is to challenge them to take on real responsibilities that will help them realize how little their education matters if it can’t be translated into creating value and solving problems.
If You Want to Be Truthful, Build Something (or Someone)
When we think of truthful people, we typically think about those who aren’t afraid to tell us about the unpleasant things we need to hear. These are the “facts don’t care about your feelings” types. But truthfulness also equals “here’s what’s right with my world and this is how I will build on that.”
Sound the Alarm, Swing the Axe
If your message can’t be misunderstood, I strongly doubt if it’s any good. People will beg you to make your philosophy safe, but they’ll hit the snooze button on your ideas as soon as you do.
A Few Promises You’re Not Gonna Like
I promise to stop criticizing and mocking the bad arguments that people make for going to college… as soon as the hundreds of college opt-outs I work with on a daily basis let me know that the people in their lives have finally stopped interrogating them with those very same arguments.
The Conclusion Comes Last
Discovering and doing what you love is analogous to dating. Before getting on bended knee to propose to a beautiful stranger, it might be wiser to flirt first and see where that goes.
Neither a Contrarian Nor a Conformist; Simply an Individual
Being a contrarian has value, but only when it’s practiced non-dogmatically. When the crowd is moving in a constructive direction, it can be useful to go along with the crowd. If going along with the crowd serves your priorities and principles, then to resist the crowd is to resist yourself. And that is the complete opposite of being self-authentic.
If You’re Going to Share Your Success, Then Please Stop Scandalzing It
I’m all for the notion of helping out and leveraging your success for the good of others, but you’re far more likely to be good at this if you’re driven by something greater than a sense of guilt towards your own success.
Your Existence Matters, but Your Work Is Always up for Debate
Economic worth is not an opinion that you have about yourself nor is it an opinion that someone else has about you. It’s a social construct generated by your ability to influence other people’s behavior through strategic forms of value-creation.
Don’t Hide Behind Good Advice
Take the risk of thinking for yourself. Much more happiness, truth, beauty and wisdom will come to you that way.” – Christopher Hitchens People get confused by conflicting prescriptions for success because they go about the process of analyzing advice all wrong. Advice is an invitation to explore. Nothing more. When you uncritically act on…