Some ranting (you can skip this if you want :-)

When I started this blog I imagined all sorts of amazing outcomes. I was going to be blogging every other day, and become a central figure on personal development from a scientific perspective. Needless to say I’ve kind of left this vision behind. Even from the very beginning this felt weird. The rigid structure of only posting every other day, following schedules to maximize readership and so forth. To write only about one topic, only because you’re supposed to help your readers and not confuse them with jumping between different subjects. I don’t just think about one thing or view things from one perspective. No, this is not me, and no longer do I attempt to live by that philosophy, I’ve gone back to my roots and do things when I feel like it.

Anyway, I felt compelled to say that, let’s move on.

Imagine if…

… everyone took your responsibilities as serious as you do and if you had a bad day and, for whatever reason couldn’t do your work, people would jump in and help out. A more concrete example of this would be helping out those cleaning our streets and emptying our dustbins. I  makes me so sad, and frustrated, when people throw cigarette buds on the street and steps on them and then walks away. It seems as if they think to themselves ‘Obviously someone is going to be clearing that up, so I won’t have to care’. The same thing goes for any other type of trash.

Responsibility people, where is your sense of responsibility? Imagine if everyone had that attitude, throwing garbage on the street just because, eventually it will be cleaned up by someone. That’s not an attitude to have in a, allegedly, advanced society of human intellectual prosperity. This thinking has to end, and we have to consider everyone else’s job our own responsibility. Only because someone is paid to do something doesn’t mean you don’t have to do that particular job yourself. Or at the very least you should appreciate the work done by others no matter how insignificant it may seem in your ‘world’.

Could this work for other jobs and tasks? I think yes. Imagine someone in your office is carrying a truck load of papers. You don’t know him, but can tell they are struggling with the load. You offer a helping hand until you reach the point where you need to turn. It’s so simple, costs nothing and can really make the day for that person you just helped out. I’m confident with a little bit of thought you can imagine all sorts of situations where a tiny gesture would make a whole lot of difference if more than one person did it.

We must stop to consider only our own situation but also see those around us, our fellow human friends. We’re in this together, earth and all. The tiniest of efforts can carry plenty of weight when carried out by a group, even more if done by a society. There really are no problems we can’t overcome, we just need to think collectively and allow our collective genius to move us forward into a unified direction.

On a Mission

I’ve made it my personal little mission to pick up some trash when walking to work. It’s dead simple, costs me nothing but could have a huge impact on our living conditions. The effects of me doing it is hardly noticeable, granted, but imagine if most people decided to do this, wow! We’d have impeccably clean streets that we could be proud of.

This  would be the very definition of collaborative efforts. I long for that day.

I just hit me, is thinking tabooed? Take a look around yourself, what things around you promote thinking? Perhaps a TV to feed you with information deemed to fit your particular demographic, ‘news’ that captures what we’re supposed to be concerned with. Books that tell us how to live our lives, things to do, experience and what not. Oh, and Internet, let’s not forget Internet, where everyone is successful, beautiful and highly intelligent with only amazing things to say.

All in all, this gives us some sort of inbuilt predesposition towards not asking questions, just follow suite. It’s almost as if society as a whole is built around the assumption that few will think about, or question the established. Those brave souls that do will quickly find themselves outnumbered and in minority. I believe I belong to the minority. Most people around me, at work, in the store, whereever, seem to almost blindly accept what’s happening to them and their surroundings.

There’s no thinking. Oh, someone told me I should eat this, or drink that to get fit. I should do that, or find this to become happy. I myself fall victim to this, but it’s becoming increasingly rare.

What will be required to liberate all these people from this mental prison? How can we promote real, critical and analytical thinking? What will be required?

I believe we just need to liberate our thinking. Allow ourselves to play with the ‘impossible’, allow ourselves to imagine the ‘impossible’, do the impossible. We have to grown ‘down’, find the kid in us, the one that used to ask questions about everything. To ponder and wonder about all that is. That’s what we need to do.

Let’s be kids again… let’s play!

There I was on my way to the train station from work after yet another day of labour. While walking back it struck me that perhaps I’m approaching this whole guiding life purpose from the wrong angle. My usual approach in understanding things is to break them down into more manageable components. This has worked fairly well… actually, maybe not but sometimes it works well. Perhaps I should first begin with a simple experiment that require very little effort and action, but could potentially bring some powerful results. I don’t know, but have decided to try.

I’ve been trying to figure out my purpose without actually thinking about the context in which I want to apply the purpose. I’m lacking the reference frame. Today I thought that I should attempt to imagine my ideal life. How would I like to wake up? How would I like to approach my day? What would be my ideal routines and habits?

Pixie dream (mehmeturgut/devitantART)

As a wildly crazy and imaginative guy this is not all that strange to me, I’ve often drifted off into the far-away-land of dreams. What I’ve never consciously done before however is to dream about a life that I actually want to live. I don’t mean the kind of life where you walk around in a robe surrounded with bunnies, but a more authentic and real life. A life not rooted, or derived, from already existing societal ideals such as a shallow career driven by something that really doesn’t matter. (Sure, maybe some actually strive for that life, good for them, but I don’t.) I mean a life where I feel my desires are fulfilled and where genuine and authentic happiness is part of my daily routine.

Even from a scientific perspective this makes sense, even though I couldn’t even begin to explain the chemicals involved or their composition, but still. The content of our mind is a result of our own conscious construction. We choose what goes in and stays there. We give our thoughts meaning. We decide how to approach any given situation. I have mentioned in a previous post about the power of association which I find applies particularly well in this scenario. Associations in my mind are mine to create, no one else can do that. (Even though they can obviously influence me!)

Actually, I’m not even sure why I brought up the science here, it makes no sense, disregard. I’ll try and figure that out later, assuming this helps me, how science plays a part here I mean. Why would it help me to imagine an ideal life? How could that be explained through science? Maybe it can’t?

This is how I imagine my ideal life

I’m in love with learning and understanding how things function. When I began writing this blog I kind of already knew that reading and learning was a big part of me. But it was only when I started writing things down that it occurred to me how incredibly sexy learning is. Intellectual stimuli is pretty darn high up on the list of awesome things. Hence, my ideal life would be filled with books and opportunities to learn about anything and everything. Sure, I have that now too, but on a much more limited scale. I mean to be literally paid to learn and share.

My hours would not be determined by anyone but me. I would be the sole determinator (awesome word!) in how my day would be spent. From the moment I wake up, to the moment I fall asleep should only be determined by choices I make alone, period.

I would want to share everything that I learn and hopefully inspire others to do the same. One of my most ambitious and long term goal would be to ‘advance’ the human race to a higher level of thinking. A time where communal knowledge generation is valued much more than individual knowledge hoarding. Sharing would be key in my society. Wisdom would be paramount.

The people around me would themselves be driven, engaging and full of ideas. A constant influx of new, fresh thinking should permeate my entire life. Together with my closet friends (I currently have none I would consider my close friend) we would create, innovate and drive society forward in a meaningful manner that benefits not just us, but everyone.

(Hey, this is my ideal life, so… I can do this!)

Then I would want to be able to leave, travel at any time when the mood strikes. To create, to express my emotions through music (I play the Piano, perhaps I should compose some music and upload?). To finally unwrap the drawing kit I got for x-mas a few years ago. To be able to do all those things I long for. A life without boundaries, only those I myself impose. To live like the earth. Constantly moving, constantly changing, evolving… living.

I do not wish to be trapped in this invisible cage. I want to break free from these chains. I need to.