Informed but not worried
Being aware of what’s happening in the world at large can help one be prepared, but it can also lead to anxiety. Uncertainty is a fact of life yet preparation, planning doesn’t have to include needless worry.
When common knowledge & the status quo are wrong
History is replete with examples of when commonly accepted wisdom was flat out wrong. Remember the doctors who treated an ailing President George Washington with bloodletting- so much so that they hastened his demise? What about the use of home equity or reverse mortgages?
Reacting is normal but what’s next?
When the stock market tanks 800 points in one day or your family doctor tells you that your recent bloodwork is concerning you naturally react to a stressful situation. The Greeks and early Stoics called this ‘phantasiai’, or the immediate impression you form. The question is what will you do next?
Finding the small advantage for a win
Do you remember a time when facing certain defeat you found a way to pull out a win? An inconspicuous, unnoticed, and seemingly unimportant detail that shifted the tide into your favor?
Theodore Roosevelt famously said that comparison is the thief of joy. Often our dissatisfaction and unhappiness are rooted in comparing ourselves to others.
Seneca recounts the story of a fellow philosopher Crates walking the streets of Athens when he came upon a young man talking to himself. “What are you doing?”, he asked. The man replied, “I’m talking to myself”. “Be careful” said Crates, “for you are communicating with a bad man!”.
An interesting story which illustrates the importance of…
After walking out to my car the find a fresh yellow blanket of pollen, and sneezing so loudly I wondered if nearby drivers could hear me, allergies came to mind. Top of mind.
Allergies are our body’s immune system reacting abnormally to a foreign substance it sees as harmful. We are familiar with common allergies, but what about mental allergies? That is how we react to negative stimuli or situations in our environment.
One effective method is immunotherapy. Immunotherapy patients with severe pollen allergies have minute doses of the offending allergens introduced into their bodies in increasing doses over time until the body produces its own immunity. Applying this method to mental or emotional allergies has its merits as well. If you’re fearful of a specific situation, make it a point to place yourself in that circumstance and practice a new more effective response.
If you find yourself riddled with anxiety, begin to employ healthy methods to reduce and ultimately sooth your troubled mind. Are you continually vexed with rudeness, dishonesty or selfishness? Make it a point to eliminate all contact with toxic individuals whenever possible. Living with allergies is no fun, but doing nothing to treat them is even worse. What mental allergies do you encounter and how do you overcome them?
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Modern philosopher Nassim Taleb has warned of the “narrative fallacy”—the tendency to assemble unrelated events of the past into stories. These stories, however gratifying to create, are inherently misleading. What’s need is a strong sense of objectivity. A difficult task when it comes to ourselves, and perhaps our chosen profession. Yet, that objectivity is key to helping us take the steps toward improving our business, personal life, and even our health.
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In his New York Times column, Kevin Roose writes, “if you’re anything like me — and the statistics suggest you probably are, at least where smartphones are concerned — you have one, too”. He notes that unlike addictions that carry a stigma, such as alcohol or opiates, phone addiction is largely accepted. Accepting that his phone use was a problem he enlisted the help of Catherine Price, a fellow journalist, and author of “How to break up with your phone”- a 30-day guide to breaking phone habits.
Here are a few of Catherine’s techniques Kevin put into practice that we should perhaps consider…
“If you seek tranquility, do less”, said Roman Emperor Marcus Aurelius. Note he didn’t say do nothing, just less. Less of what? Less of what matters least and more of what matters most.
This week’s challenge is to keep a time diary. Whether it’s on your computer, calendar or a notepad doesn’t matter. Just log down how your time is spent, including what you do when you get home- dinner, watching television, reading, etc. Next Friday review how you spent your time and ask yourself if this is your highest and best use of your time. Do our activities match my stated goals and values?
When we do less, what we do get’s better. Our remaining..
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