Stick to What Matters to You

During my last period of self-analysis, I found that I don't stick with things long enough to get good at them. I go from one thing to the next never really achieving mastery in anything.

A few years ago, I really got into drawing as a hobby. I did this for some time but stopped after I hit a plateau and never really got back into it. My sister, on the other hand, stuck with it throughout all these years and is now able to produce work that rivals those of masters and it makes me wonder which heights I could of reached if only I would of stuck with it.
I can recount a few of these activities that I simply dropped after reaching a certain point. Obviously, some of these were waste of time to begin with and there wasn't any real value for me to keep doing them but I do have some regrets.

This becomes a bigger problem the older you get as you come to realize that your time on this Earth is limited and it's therefor important to identify, and stick to, the things that is most important to you. It's not possible to reach mastery in everything therefor it's important to focus on the things that matter most.

Hedonists Are Selfish

“Pleasure does not bring happiness; it only brings an increasing hunger for more pleasure.”

-Orrin Woodward

This blog is an extension of a blog I've made back in 2017 related to the differences between  Pleasure, Happiness and Joy.

According to Wikipedia, "Hedonism is the view that pleasure is the only intrinsic good and that pain is the only intrinsic bad." Hedonists, or those that follows the Hedonism lifestyle, are likely to be selfish because pleasure seekers are hungry for the things that give them pleasures. Having a hungry mind is like being physically hungry - you can't think clearly until that need is fulfilled. If the mind is busy with fulfilling its own, albeit artificial, need then there's no room to think about anything, or anyone, else.

Pleasure leads to addictions and it's difficult for us to consider this a bad thing because it feels good for us to do "it". Being able to identify, and remove, the things that cloud our minds can go a long way in making us a better, less selfish, person. 

Pleasure/Addiction is what prevent us from truly living a fulfilling life. Don't sacrifice long term fulfillment for short term pleasures.

Take Responsibility Over Your Education

A child usually start school at around 4-5 years of age and continues his education until adulthood. After College/University, however, many stop learning somehow thinking that they won't have to learn anything new once they've settled in a career.

This was certainly the path I was going to take having barely read any books in School/College... I was all but done with them until I was approached by a successful business owner who said "You're worth minimum wage from the neck down - it's what you know that will make a difference in how successful you'll be." and then proceeded to mentor me for the next 4-5 years. Needless to say, this encounter changed my life and my perspective on education.

The education system fails because it makes the entire process boring, at least it was to me, and ultimately doesn't instill a desire to learn from the student. Everything is pushed down your throat whether or not you have an interest in the subject and you come to hate the process never knowing that it doesn't have to be like that. 

There's actually a lot to love about learning if you take responsibility over it rather than take in whatever someone else wants you to learn.

I remember an encounter I had with one of my co-worker. He had a look at the book I was currently reading, which was on Philosophy, and asked why I would read something like this considering that it didn't have any, at least not direct, use in I.T. (I work in I.T.). 

My belief is that if you want to "think outside of the box" you actually need to know what's outside of the box. There's definitely value in reading materials from your field of work but don't be afraid to get out of that comfort zone. 

I've recently set myself a goal to learn about, what is widely considered to be, the greatest work of humankind. I have acquired such books as "The Origins of Species" by Charles Darwin (Science), "Human Actions" by Ludwig Von Mises (Economics) and a few books on "Alexander The Great" (History) just to name a few. To me, learning about our greatest achievements is both necessary and inspiring.