3 Minute Monday
Hi friend,
It’s Sam Harris podcast day!
Go listen now on Apple Podcasts or Spotify.
Here’s another lesson I learned from Sam…
I asked him about why our minds are their own worst enemies sometimes.
Why we can be so much meaner to ourselves than we ever would be to the people around us.
“To a first approximation, wisdom is the capacity to take your own advice.
You effortlessly give that advice to others.
If you could just give it and successfully receive it yourself, you’re basically Socrates.”
Very Petersonian here.
“Treat yourself like someone you are responsible for helping.”
An interesting fact – if you have a dog, the chance of you ensuring that they complete their course of antibiotics is over 90%.
However the likelihood of you completing your own course is less than 50%.
This fact identifies something about our nature.
It is much easier to look after someone else than it is to look after ourselves.
This manifests in our self talk too.
The constant inner monologue we have running can be our harshest critic.
It knows exactly the pain points, insecurities and deepest fears to twist the knife into.
If anyone else said the things we tell ourselves, they would be our worst enemy.
There’s no one who you’ll spend as much time talking to as yourself.
We are born, and will die, alone.
Even the most invested of friends & family are essentially just spectators waving cheerily from the shore as you swim through the swell.
That inner monologue which is running inside your head will rarely stop.
So you’d better become friends with it.
The balance of compassion, care & encouragement Sam and Jordan are talking about here IS the sweet spot.
You want the absolute best for the person you are helping.
But you don’t get them there by abusing them.
How many times have you been asked a question by a friend, to which you have given an answer that you yourself would wholly benefit from hearing?
You deliver it with a soft, caring smile which accepts your friend’s failures whilst providing them with a pathway to improvement and an encouraging push to get them going.
However when you are faced with the same problem yourself, you’re met with nothing but a thought loop of self-loathing, pity and scorn at your own shortcomings.
A reminder of how far away from your potential you are and a harsh kick in the dick on the way out of the door.
The point here is that the line between being tough enough to motivate and gentle enough to be understanding is wider than you think.
You can afford to give yourself a break.
If you demand the best from yourself, this should also include being the best at encouraging yourself when things don’t go perfectly.
MODERN WISDOM
I do a podcast which has had 230 million+ downloads. You should subscribe on Apple Podcasts or Spotify.
This week’s upcoming episodes:
Monday.
Sam Harris – the 5x NYT best selling author joins me to talk everything for 3+ hours. An absolute must listen. Strap in.
Thursday.
Gurwinder Bhogal – one of my favourite guests returns for 2+ hours to drop 19 more fascinating insights about human psychology, cognitive biases, crowd behaviour and more. Phenomenal.
Saturday.
Erik Hoel – investigating the mystery of the mind, the science of consciousness, a new theory of why we have free will and more.
THINGS I’VE LEARNED
1.
Derogating motherhood is a minority viewpoint.
“According to a survey by Forbes, 84% of working women reported that staying home to raise children is a financial luxury that they aspire to.
More than 1 in 3 resented their partner for not earning enough to make that dream a reality.
As I read this, a joke from Chris Rock’s most recent Netflix special came to mind: If you’re in a neighbourhood where most of the women aren’t working, it’s probably a nice neighbourhood; if you’re in a neighbourhood where most of the men aren’t working, you are in danger.” — Rob Henderson
2.
Stop complaining about your limitations.
“I promise you there is someone who’s had it worse and has done it better.” — Alex Hormozi
3.
Liberals are a dying breed.
“121,248 participants from 11 countries were investigated.
Researchers found that Conservatives have, on average, more children & grandchildren than Liberals.
The proportion of Conservative individuals therefore increases from generation to generation.
These findings suggest that differential demography may lead to a shift of prevailing political attitudes.”
For those who aren’t Behavioural Genetics-pilled yet, Political Ideology is around 40% heritable.
Is this inevitable generational swing toward Conservatism going to be a pronatalist rallying cry for the Left?
— h/t William Costello
LIFE HACK
Train somewhere where you’re the weakest.
I tried a commercial gym out this week in Austin.
Midday on a Tuesday, lots of nice old people pottering about doing the step machine, very pleasant.
I had a terrible session.
On Saturdays I train at Lift ATX.
Filled with semi-pro bodybuilders and Instagram influencers on TRT.
I never have a bad session.
*Your training session is the average of the 5 closest machine-users in the gym you’re at*
Big love,
Chris x
Never miss an episode by pressing Subscribe on Apple Podcasts or Spotify.
PS
Another Modern Wisdom Cinema episode in Vegas next week. No quit.
