When Your Mind Has Visitors (Short Story Version)
There you were, sitting down and minding your own business, when someone stole your dream partner. This opened a door, and in came Jealousy to visit you. Jealousy had big thirsty eyes and was wearing too many clothes (none of which they owned, all of which they’d borrowed). And around Jealousy you always envied what others had, and always thought everything you did have was bland and boring. So you asked Jealousy, ‘Jealousy, what should I do about this jealous feeling I have?’ And Jealousy said, ‘Go out, get more money! Become more successful! Become happier, and then so-and-so whatever his/her name was,’
When Your Mind Has Visitors (Extended, Deep Version)
First, a disclaimer. This extended piece is not my best writing but I feel it goes deep into the complicated dynamics of emotions, states of mind, and the mind itself
The Weatherman Phenomenon — How smart people become dumber, while looking smarter.
Is there a bigger fraudster in society than he who presumes to predict the weather? Let's unpack that today, building on what we first discussed with the U-Curve of Certainty Theory and complex systems. An angry rant about Weathermen (or Weather People, to be more PC). It was New Year’s Eve. I can’t remember the year, what I can remember is the weather forecast — the weatherman said there was a ‘0% chance of rain.’ Not 2%, not 1%, but 0%. You can probably see where this is going. Come New Year’s Eve, it rained. What a bizarre profession, where you can get away with
The Memory Pill Problem
My mother went to her Doctor and mentioned she was having memory problems from time to time. So, the Doctor gave her some supplements that were supposed to help her improve. She was driving away, when her friend turned to her and asked, 'where are your pills?' Mum gasped, 'I forgot them!' The Memory Pill Problem Thanks to Mum, who gave me the perfect example of this to write about, 'the memory pill problem' can be used to understand a lot of marketing and problem-solving situations. It's the case where the problem takes the customer away from solutions, rather than towards them. Solution Approaching Problems When
You’ll try following the map until you realise it’s a compass you need.
Most of us look for a map to follow. I suspect we have all been guilty of wanting to see the path laid out before us, with no hidden bends or unfinished roads. But as it is with real-world expeditions, you need to go off road. No great learning or solution can be laid out step-by-step-by-step. The Thousand Doors is the truth that your real future lies hidden, out of sight, and requires you to Open Doors. There is no fool-proof process, no journey free from obstacles. If you're being creative and daring, there are very few relevant best practices. Nothing worthwhile is straightforward. Stop
Build your career like the Harbour Bridge
Wondering what the heck you're meant to be doing in the world? Wondering whether you're in the right place? Well, you shouldn't be. Not because you're failing, not because there's something wrong with you. Just because you're still building your Harbour Bridge. What the heck is your Harbour Bridge? Well, let's stop first and look around. Look around. Your friends might be starting things like little businesses, Instagram pages, blogs, personal websites and Youtube channels. They might write about their day, or they might share travel videos. These things are actually pretty typical. Pretty normal. But how do you make money doing them? How are they going
What they found when they stole & dissected Einstein’s brain
Short answer — nothing. A guy called Thomas Harvey stole Einstein's brain when he died — Harvey did the autopsy and took the brain thinking he might find some answers. They cut it up, dissected it, studied it
Do what needs to be done
Look around. You're surrounded by people who are doing what they think they need to do, instead of simply doing what needs to be done. Surrounded by people who are looking for what they should do, instead of simply doing what needs to be done. We are all vulnerable to this — it is the condition of being human. But a hint: If they drop the 'they', they'll see what they're looking for straight away. If they drop the focus on themselves, it will smack them in the face. If we can all cut out the 'me', we'll see clearly. Would this open a Door For Someone
Don’t accept or reject what I say: test it (Eckhart Tolle)
As I always say, 'all advice is bad advice'. Because no matter how smart or 'successful' they are, no one is you. Therefore, they can't give you perfect advice. Almost no one effectively contextualises the advice they give to your situation. The social media influencers give young people the first steps to becoming like them. Business people give young people the first steps to becoming like them. Coders believe everyone should learn code at school, philosophers believe everyone should learn philosophy at school. Parents instruct their children to complete the narratives they could never close out, more often than they sit down and do Interest
The Consensus Is — There’s No Consensus
What is the best way to sing? What is the best way to sing? Beyonce Knowles sings very differently to Barbara Streisand, who sings differently to Freddy Mercury, and his singing was very different to Adele's. Each has risen to great heights by doing things their respective way. So what's the best way to sing? What's the consensus? What is the best way to steer a soccer team to victory? Pep Guardiola’s teams hoard possession, press hard and break teams down. And they’ve won it all. But then there’s Jose Mourinho’s teams who are the stark opposite. They're defensively tight, less sexy, less glamorous. They’ve won