Einstein, as everyone knows, was an extraordinary physicist. What isn’t as well documented, though, is Einstein’s sailing expertise, or lack thereof. Einstein had a clunky 15-foot sailboat named Tinef, Yiddish for worthless or junk. People who watched him sail were convinced that his boat’s name mirrored his sailing skills. But that didn’t stop Einstein from … Read more
Okay, although the title may seem like it, this isn’t an article about how to fake it till you make it. On the contrary, it is an ode to the art of reading and an attempt to dispel the notion that reading is a time-consuming pursuit or that it’s something only the cultured (or nerds) … Read more
Here’s a popular Irish-Catholic joke: “What do Irish Catholic bodybuilders lift?” Answer: Their guilt! Point me to something that’s gone wrong, and in less than two minutes, I can connect the source of the mishap to something I did (or didn’t do) or could have but didn’t prevent. The potted plant died because of my … Read more
There will come a time when you do something for the last time, and you will rarely know it. Sam Harris. With the cultural emphasis (overemphasis) on staying productive and making every second count, we forget to indulge in life’s little and, often, greatest pleasures. We fail to realize that many of life’s most valuable … Read more
Never underestimate the big importance of little things – Matt Haig, The Midnight Library A successful ad campaign based on little things In 2012, Olivari Olive Oil, an international Olive Oil brand, decided to enter the already-competitive US olive oil market. To launch the brand in the US and increase its brand awareness, the ad … Read more
That feeling of “what on earth was I thinking” when you remember something embarrassing you said or did is universally unpleasant. But it comes with a silver lining. Seeing our own errors in judgment is a sign of progress and a testament to improved self-awareness. We just need more of it in our lives. Henry … Read more
Canadian educator Laurence Peter once said, “Fortune knocks but once, but misfortune has a lot more patience.” Truth. We try to play safe to avoid adversity in life, even though growth is interminably linked with growing pains in the natural order of things. Instead of fighting adversity, embracing mild stress and minor setbacks can be … Read more
There is no dearth of material on minimalism—books, podcasts, blogs, shows. It can be addictive to watch someone on a Netflix show discard 90% of their possessions and still be left with a fairly cluttered space. But the reasons to simplify and declutter go beyond healthy bank balances and walkable spaces. Social scientists Elgin and … Read more
Have you been trying to get fit, start a business, or learn Korean but have instead become an expert beatboxer or pen twirler? First, congratulations—beatboxing and pen twirling are impressive skills, regardless of what others say. But, yes, you, like me, may also be a master of spending “major time on minor things.” (Motivational speaker … Read more
We are all walking bundles of expectations. We have expectations of ourselves and others, and we feel bound and pressured by what others expect of us. All of this collective weight of expectations really just does one thing—it makes us irritable, angry, and disappointed because, let’s be honest; eventually, we’ll fall short, at least on … Read more
Singapore has a law called the “The Maintenance of Parents Act.” This law provides elderly parents who can’t support themselves a legal channel to seek maintenance from their children who are capable of helping them but won’t do so. Is the mere existence of such a law a clear sign that we humans are an … Read more
Productivity, as defined originally in economics, is a measurement of the rate of output per unit of input. It didn’t take long for that concept to spill over to popular culture in the form of “Personal productivity,” which is really a measure of how efficiently and consistently a person can complete an important task. Unfortunately, … Read more
In 2014 Frederic Gros, a professor of Philosophy at the University of Paris, published his book, A Philosophy of walking, which became a surprise bestseller and was later translated into English. In the book, Gros describes how some of the most original thinkers of our times relied on the power of movement to come up … Read more
In a speech in 1982, British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher said, “The battle for women’s rights has largely been won.” I guess you could call Thatcher an extreme optimist. Gender parity has been and continues to be a hot-button issue. We’ve come a long way in the last few centuries, but we still have ways … Read more
“I had a tough childhood, so I want to make sure my children have it easy” is a common refrain among many parents. Fair enough. While this philosophy is well-intentioned, it’s often poorly executed. The result: overzealous parents with overprotected children. Consequently, we raise kids who do not know how to problem solve effectively or … Read more
If the title of this article makes you feel like you’ve landed in the biology section of the science fair, I empathize with you. There’s a good reason I pivot this week to discuss the gut microbiome instead of my usual pondering about abstract philosophical subjects such as how to cultivate eulogy values. Strange as … Read more
NY Times writer David Brooks wrote an opinion piece a few years ago about how, as a society, we focus on developing resume values instead of eulogy values. Ultimately when we pass, no one’s going to care about the degrees we accumulated, the perfect spreadsheets we built, or the $ in our bank accounts (okay, … Read more
Neuroscientists have proven that repetition improves learning. According to the multiple trace theory, finding at least one trace of an event becomes easier when there are more traces of that event in memory. With that premise in mind, this post is a consolidated summary of a few articles published earlier this year— a wellness recap … Read more
It starts as a whisper and slowly gets louder and louder. Before you know it, it crowds out all your other thoughts. Soon, you have no choice but to listen to it humbly. I’m referring to the voices in our head telling us to back off when we’re about to exert ourselves in challenging situations. … Read more
Having an open mind or getting someone else to open up their mind to a different point of view is hard work. But it can be done. The Galileo affair from the 17th century has some classic lessons and some do’s, but mostly don’ts, on how to get someone to change their perspective, especially when … Read more