Philosophy
-
How a Book on Negative Thinking Made Me 20% Happier
There’s one passage from The Antidote by Oliver Burkeman that has been a more potent wake-up call for my happiness than blasting trumpets, buckets of icy water, and a double espresso shot combined. It goes like this: The startling conclusion at which they [reputable psychologists and philosophers] had all arrived, in different ways, was this:…
-
The Problem with the Growth Mindset
This year, I had two exam periods that couldn’t have been more different. During the first one, I was highly committed. I had to confront five exams in four days — which included studying the most difficult philosophical text I’d ever read, the entire history of Romance languages, and the perfidious grammar of the Portuguese conjuntivo. But…
-
How Two Boring Sentences Helped Me Stop Feeling Lost
“Can I be frank?” The lady across from me looked up from the forms in her hand and peeked over the half-moon glasses that throned on her pointy nose. I stared at her like a deer caught in headlights, petrified. After an awkward silence, she allowed herself to proceed. “You seem a little…” Oh no,…
-
Mono No Aware: The Secret Key to an Intentional Life
I try to catch it, I try to save it, I try to control the damage. But it’s too late. The most expensive wine bottle I ever bought is nosediving toward the ground. For the few milliseconds before impact, I find myself in a liminal state between wholeness and destruction. I know what will follow.…
-
The Importance of Having an Existential Crisis
Every few months, I sink into a deep existential crisis where I question everything — who I am, what I’m doing, the point of it all. It feels like getting sucked into a vicious grinder that pulverizes any sense of purpose I created for myself. Or like waking up on the wildest rollercoaster ride and never having…
-
The 3 Most Valuable Insights I Gained in 2022
In the past year, I published 72 articles, sent out 21 newsletters, and generated roughly 1,000 ideas. I also built a website and started toying around with several book ideas. This is a problem. Not in the sense that I should’ve churned out more content, but rather that it’s too much information. See, all wisdom…
-
Four Thousand Weeks by Oliver Burkeman: Top 5 Lessons
One of the things I love most about this book is the author’s personal history. You see, long before publishing Four Thousand Weeks, Oliver Burkeman wrote a weekly column on productivity. He’s a productivity geek. A guru. He knows every trick in the book — and added a few chapters. Did it make him happier, though? Complete,…
-
‘The Last Time:’ A Simple Idea to Savor Your Life
Recently, a relative told me a bizarre story. It all started like a typical day, he told me. He drove to work and did his job as usual. At lunch, one of his co-workers approached him. “You know what,” she said unsuspectingly, “I feel like I need to exercise again. It’s been a while.” Of…
-
Don’t Be in the Moment
Recently, I visited Liseberg — a stunning amusement park in Göteborg, Sweden. It promised an absurd amount of fun. But when I got on the most popular roller coaster — a majestic, green, space-themed colossus of steel — something strange happened: I was stressed out. Not because I’m scared of rollercoasters or heights (it’s quite the opposite, actually). But rather because…
-
A Simpler Life: Lessons From Living With 49 Items for 30 Days
One month ago, I started solo traveling through Northern Europe with nothing but a small hiking backpack. Inside: 49 of the most essential things I own. (More on the exact list of items later.) And so, for the next 30 days, my entire livelihood would literally sit on my shoulders. During this trip, I worked…