3 Minute Monday
Hi friend,
Some questions for you…
Would you let a friend talk to you in the way that your own inner voice does?
Seriously.
Take a moment to consider what you would think of that friend.
Are they compassionate? Supportive? Reassuring? Wise? Stable? Loyal?
Or are they negative, vindictive, critical, sly and repetitively boring?
The most important relationship you have is the one with the voice inside your own head.
It’s not going anywhere.
And if you wouldn’t accept a friend speaking to you in the way that YOU speak to you, then something needs to change.
Let’s reverse the thought experiment…
Would you talk to a friend the way you talk to yourself?
Can you honestly say that you would be a good friend if you did?
Or another one…
How would you feel if your inner monologue was broadcast for all the world to hear?
Would other people want to hear that soundtrack and would it make them feel better?
Or would it drag them down?
The landscape of our mind is so fundamental to how we exist that it’s easy to not notice when the weather is constantly terrible.“Treat yourself as if you are somebody who you are responsible for helping” – Dr Jordan B. Peterson
How many times have you been asked a question by a friend in need to which you have given an answer which you yourself would wholly benefit from hearing??
And you’ve delivered 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.
You are much more likely to ensure your dog finishes a course of antibiotics than you are for your own medication for exactly the same reason…
Compassion and care for others is much easier than for ourselves.
We are constantly comparing the worst elements of ourselves to the highlight reel we’re exposed to of everyone else.
And inevitably we end up not liking what we see, which makes us feel resentful and helpless.
In an aircraft malfunction, you are told to put your own mask on first, why?
Because someone who is suffocating is of little use to anybody else.
The same applies here.
If you cannot give yourself the same self love and encouragement which you give to others, you will suffocate, and be of less and less use to those who need you most.
And they are there, even if you don’t know it.
MODERN WISDOM
I do a podcast which makes you less dumb than you were this morning. You should subscribe on Apple Podcasts or Spotify.
This week’s upcoming episodes:
Monday.
Michael Knowles – should free speech be absolute? Has political correctness gone too far or not far enough? How do we move forward when the fundamental principles of language are unstable? Great insight.
Thursday.
Julia Galef – how to think better and make effective decisions by one of the most interesting people coming out of the rationality movement.
Saturday.
Chris Walsh – the cannabis industry is projected to double over the next few years. Chris runs the world’s biggest Cannabis Industry Trend Analysis company and breaks down just what we should expect from the future of weed.
THINGS I’VE LEARNED
1.
“In the same way that constant access to porn is deforming men’s expectations of women, OnlyFans is deforming women’s expectations of men.” – Carl Benjamin
On-demand videos of sex and on-demand money for videos of you having sex are a very dangerous combination.
2.
“The wise of every generation discover the same truths.” – Shane Parrish
3.
Creating clickbait content is like having sex with that ugly guy or girl who you keep bootycalling.
Sure, they always say yes.
And sure, it LOOKS like a win objectively.
But doesn’t contribute to your long term goals.
And doing it for too long will get you in bother.
LIFE HACK
Upgrade Sound Before Video.
Every content creator knows this.
People will put up with awful video if the sound quality is good.
But bad sound will make an audience turn off immediately.
The best, cheapest solution I’ve found is the wired headphones which come with an iPhone.
Make sure nothing is in between your mouth and the mic and you’ll have more-than-good-enough audio quality.
AirPod Pros and normal AirPods don’t sounds as clear because the microphone is behind your mouth.
AirPod Pro Max are a little better but still the wired version wins for me.
If you’re recording content regularly, starting a podcast or need to up your Zoom-meeting game – buy a Blue Yeti USB Microphone.
£119, totally plug & play and kept me going for the first 2 years of Modern Wisdom.
Add on a Logitech C920 Webcam for £69 and you’ve got a crystal-clear audio & video setup which will look gorgeous and you can pack in your bag.
Big love,
Chris x
Listen to me on Apple Podcasts or Spotify.
Say hi on Twitter or Instagram.
