AnExpansionOfThePsychicProximityPrinciple
As I have started reading my first text for "Best Books", You are the Placebo, it seemed to work like a dissertation ala Ubiquity and that I could revisit and expand my Jobs pamphlet and expand it better into a dissertation.
I am just getting this down for the time that I decide on things (into 2027).
Even the Buddha experienced challenges with meditation: Historical texts reveal its potential downsides https://theconversation.com/even-the-buddha-experienced-challenges-with-meditation-historical-texts-reveal-its-potential-downsides-287741
Others who provide similar advice:
1. Connecting the Dots (Trusting the Journey)This is the idea that you cannot connect the dots looking forward; you can only connect them looking backward. You must trust that your current experiences will matter later.Joseph Campbell: The famous mythologist called this "following your bliss." He wrote that when you follow your true path, hidden hands will help you, and the universe will open doors where there were only walls.Richard Feynman: The Nobel Prize-winning physicist believed in honoring your curiosity without knowing where it would lead. His book, Surely You're Joking, Mr. Feynman!, shows how his random hobbies—like safe-cracking and drawing—unexpectedly helped his scientific career later.
2. Love and Loss (Embracing Failure)This is the idea that getting fired or facing a massive setback can actually be a great stroke of luck because it frees you to be a beginner again.J.K. Rowling: In her own famous Harvard Commencement Speech, she spoke about the "fringe benefits of failure." She explained that hitting rock bottom became the solid foundation upon which she rebuilt her life and wrote Harry Potter.Ray Dalio: The billionaire investor built his entire philosophy around this. In his book Principles, he explains that failing horribly in the 1980s was the best thing that ever happened to him because it cured his arrogance and taught him how to manage risk.
3. Death as a Life Tool (Memento Mori)This is the philosophy of using the reminder of death to strip away pride, fear, and embarrassment, leaving only what is truly important.Marcus Aurelius: The ancient Roman Emperor and Stoic philosopher wrote extensively about this in his personal journal, Meditations. He used the phrase "Memento Mori" (remember you must die) to stop wasting time on trivial anxieties and focus strictly on doing good work.Oliver Burkeman: The modern author of Four Thousand Weeks: Time Management for Mortals argues that we only get about 4,000 weeks on Earth. He echoes Jobs by saying that accepting our limited time is the only way to break free from impossible expectations and choose a meaningful life.