955451 -- Try The Opposite
Viktor Frankl, the brilliant psychologist, cured patients suffering from phobias or neurotic habits using a method he called "paradoxical intention." Let's say a patient couldn't sleep. The standard therapy would have been something obvious, like relaxation techniques. Frankl instead encouraged the patient to try not to fall asleep. He found that shifting focus off the problem deflected the patient's obsessive attention away from it and allowed them to eventually sleep normally.
Fans of the TV show Seinfeld might remember an episode called "The Opposite" where George Costanza magically improves his life by doing the opposite of whatever he'd normally do. "If every instinct you have is wrong," Jerry says to him, "then the opposite would have to be right." The larger point is that sometimes our instincts or habits get stuck in a bad pattern that pushes us further from our natural, healthy selves.
Now you shouldn't immediately toss out everything in your life--some stuff is working. But what if you explored opposites today? What if you broke the pattern?
"What assistance can we find in the fight against habit? Try the opposite!" -- Epictetus, Discourses, 1.27.4
955295 -- The Wise Don't Have Problems
Hesiod, the poet, said that "the best treasure is a sparing tongue." Robert Greene considers it a law of power: Always Say Less Than Necessary.
We talk because we think it's helping, whereas in reality it's making things hard for us. If our spouse is venting, we want to tell them what they should do. In fact, all they actually want us to do is hear them. In other situations, the world is trying to give us feedback or input, but we try to talk ourselves out of the problem--only to make it worse.
So today, will you be part of the problem or part of the solution?
Will you hear the wisdom of the world or drown it out with noise?
"This is why we say that nothing happens to the wise person contrary to their expectations" -- Seneca, On Tranquillity of Mind, 13.3b
Light blue propaganda would have you believe the UK regrets leaving the EU 10 years on. Although, an interactive poll below the graph shows 73% of 1,269 of us that voted still believe it was the right call.
954666 - page 187 - Take A Walk
'In a notoriously loud city like Rome, it was impossible to get much peace and quiet. The noises of wagons, the shouting of vendors, the hammering of a blacksmith--all filled the streets with piercing violence (to say nothing of the putrid smells of a city with poor sewage and sanitation). So philosophers went on a lot of walks--to get where they needed to go, to clear their heads, to get fresh air.
Throughout the ages, philosophers, writers, poets, and thinkers have found that walking offers an additional benefit--time and space for better work. As Nietzsche would later say: "It is only ideas gained from walking that have any worth."
Today, make sure you take a walk. And in future, when you get stressed or overwhelmed, take a walk. When you have a tough problem to solve or a decision to make, take a walk. When you want to be creative, take a walk. When you need to get some air, take a walk. When you have a phone call to make, take a walk. When you need some exercise, take a walk. When you have a meeting or a friend over, take a walk together.
Nourish yourself and your mind and solve your problems along the way.
"We should take wandering outdoor walks, so that the mind might be nourished and refreshed by the open air and deep breathing." -- Seneca, On Tranquillity of Mind, 17.8'