Dear Mitchell
Dearest brother Mitchell. I mean to tell you that your selfishness and stupidity knows no bounds. Here’s a picture of us when we were young — who’d have thought one of us would grow up to be such a narcissist, such a self-serving twat. What do you mean ‘who?’ Fine then, I’ll spell it out for you. Where will I begin? At the start then, because I don’t know how much you don’t know, and I can only hope that I get something very important through to you with this letter. So let’s see… the start. Oh yes. Well, you are second born
The ‘Goldilocks Zone’ — Avoid caring too little, or too much, about anything.
Everything in life tastes better with non-attachment. Romantic relationships, friendships, health, career, your goals (if you’re foolish enough to have them)… you can’t even get too caught up in the search for Enlightenment and meaning. You'd be reading a self-help book, and then next thing you know, you're a twenty-one year-old life coach. But there’s a problem with the English Language — we’re missing levels within words. The middle zone is one I’ve come to call ‘The Goldilocks Zone’ — the place of non-attachment. Don't see the value in 'goals'? When you say to someone ‘I don’t see the value in goals’ or
I replaced the word ‘sin’ in the Bible. Now things have a whole new meaning.
I recently came across the work of Gabor Maté, the Hungarian-Canadian physician, and all of a sudden I started to see things in a whole new light. Cross-referencing his thoughts with everything I’d ever known, my mind wandered to the Bible, and a concept that had always gnawed at me. ‘Sin’ — and I did a sacrilegious thing. I replaced it with the word ‘trauma.’ Suddenly, things have a whole new and clearer meaning. ‘Jesus died for our sins,’ becomes — Jesus died for our trauma. ‘Go to confession to be cleansed of your sins becomes,’ — Go to confession to be cleansed of your trauma. ‘Everybody sins, it
It’s Nothing More Than A Party
The Student said, Speak to me of existence. For this world is deceptive — in every corner dances a different shadow of what to pursue, what to follow. And the Doorman said, Here I stand on the shoulders of giants, for it is not I, but many before me who pointed out that existence is essentially playful. There is no necessity for it whatsoever. It is like music or theatre. The whole purpose of it is simply to be enjoyed, to engage others, and to stimulate them. It is an experience. In one way of thinking, music, theatre and art are not essential —
When Rich People Say ‘Don’t Worry About Money’
Questions followed the remorseful billionaire everywhere… ‘How do we make money?’ ‘How do we build wealth like you?’ So he gathered a crowd and addressed them once and for all. ‘Look,’ he said, ‘take it from me, yes I’m a billionaire, but I burned bridges to get here. I chased glory and left a trail of destruction in my wake. Those around me suffered, and in the end it wasn’t worth it. Now I’ve learnt to let it go and live a more balanced life.’ But the crowd got angry and said, ‘it’s easy for you to say, having made the money already! Once we’ve
THE EXISTENTIAL FLU — Diagnosing how we lose awareness and get back on track.
I had a crushing existential crisis recently… Don’t worry, I managed to dig myself out of it. Not only that, but I think I can reduce its occurrence in future. This experience is not just ‘feeling down’ — it’s a completely undocumented illness that plagues the modern world called the Existential Flu. What’s the Existential Flu? When your thinking is invaded by negative questions, self-doubt, low self-belief, a sense of meaninglessness, fuzzy-thinking, frustration for life and… well, that feeling of being hopelessly lost. These thoughts are not accurate, they don’t reflect your reality or progress in life — they are an invasion.
Seek clarity, not certainty or progress — or you’ll never feel content
Uncertainty has many benefits. What is undiscovered cannot yet be seen. Venturing to new territories is essential if we want to discover new opportunities. Christopher Columbus never meant to discover America, but stumbled upon it by accident — how could he have found it any other way? So instead of expecting the Room you’re in to change, try opening a new Door. For the roads of man trace only familiar paths — those already trod by others. And to re-trace those steps is to fight against your very nature. Traveling this way, you will never be content. For some part of you is unique, and quite
‘The Doormen’ — May 2022 Letter To The First Constant Students
Dear Constant Students, Today I’m speaking to all members of the community, as well as anyone connected to this journey from afar. It’s been about a year since Liam and I began running workshops and then welcoming in our first members. In that year I’ve learnt so much — I’ve made so many wonderful mistakes, had some enlightening failures and seem to have gained the world. But I’ve also been terribly frustrated and disappointed too! Today I want to discuss just how important you in the community are in making this all work. As a reminder, The Constant Student is a community that
Are You Content To Be Forgotten?
Today you will learn how to get anything you want
How Do You Live In The Present While Thinking About A Better Future?
This is the dilemma — the trade off for being a visionary or aspirational person appears to be losing an appreciation of the present. We fall into the trap of thinking of the future at the expense of the now. This seems logical. By focusing on how things should be better, we’re focusing on how imperfect they are now