The past week has been more draining than I expected. Not getting enough sleep appears to be additive. I think there’s also something to be said for routine and ensuring that you get done what you want to get done. I find that the further I put something off in the day, the less likely it is to get done. Things just seem to come up. My solution to this is just to get things done in the morning. There’s been a lot of stuff on this from get the most important things done first, eat the frog, etc. I just find for me I find a lot of value out of getting my reading time in the morning. For other people it’s doing some writing. Quiet time is something I find a lot of value in. More so, now that I don’t have much of it. Just sitting, journaling and being at peace.
Source: Hero with 1000 Faces – Joseph Campbell
Lesson: Myth is humanities expression of the psyche
I’ve been trying to get through this work for a long time. Ever since I started looking into comparative religion I started to think the parallels between Christianity and these other religions are obvious. When I spoke to my friend he recommended this book. I found it more challenging to get through than I expected. The challenge for me wasn’t his commentary, but in getting through the excerpts from the various myths. I don’t know if it was the contrast of commentary on literature that I found hard to grasp. I’m glad that more people are getting into Jungian psychology. Maybe the part I found most interesting is how as we age and lose our function and independence we become more connected to a greater being and just accept the world as it is.
Source: Integral Psychology – Ken Wilber
Lesson: Take the truths from every group and apply them to your group of work. Humans are condemned to create big pictures, choose your big pictures with care.
While I’m in complete agreement with the search for “truth.” At times I feel that if we don’t have other people doing the journey with us, we are lost. The search for information, without having your views and values tested, appears worthless. Furthermore, not applying them within your life may be a larger penalty. I find that we are often on a quest to gather information, but we never take the next step on giving back to other people. We speak on equality, but we’re not willing to go out and help our neighbor. I’m guilty of this as well. Not giving enough money or time to other people. There’s so much personal value out of helping others, and I’m not sure why we neglect this so much. In relationships, there can be a lot of focus on how we, the individual feels, while there is likely more value in thinking of the other person.
Source: The Coddling of the American Mind – Lukianoff and Haidt
Lesson: We argued that many parents, K-12 teachers, professors, and university administrators have been unknowingly teaching a generation of students to engage in the mental habits commonly seen in people who suffer from anxiety and depression
At times I feel like this book is contributing to polarization, just as those who support “safe spaces” are contributing. I think I gravitate towards the just do it and get through it attitude while not accepting emotion. I think the hyper rationalization is probably not human, just like the emotions above all else and feeling safe. This book as a lot of the same tone as Anti-fragile and I think reading anti-fragile was probably more valuable. In going through the great course on Nietzsche I think the healthier option is accepting the emotion with ration and realizing that as humans we operate in both realms. I’m uncertain how to work on applying this daily.
Seeking Progress 