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Why do we tend to think everyone is the same? Take, for example, SMART goals - goals that are specific, measurable, attainable, relevant, and timely. While those are good qualities for goals to have in theory, not everyone is motivated by goals with those particular qualities. 

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Why do I read literature and why do I read history and other non-fiction works? It's one of those things that is its own reward. 

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I finished reading Eleanor Oliphant is Completely Fine. 

strange facts about walnuts

The walnut is not a nut that you can just eat at will and keep eating. It's different in that sense from the cashew, the peanut, the pistachio. 

If you eat a handful of walnuts, you will not want to eat any more. Walnuts actually evolved this ability as a protective mechanism.

cross

I was reading the Gospel of Mark, chapter 15 today, and I was struck by how, just hours before he went to the cross, Jesus was still thinking of others. A woman came in and anointed his feet with perfume, and everyone was grumbling about why this expensive perfume was 'wasted' in this way when it could have been sold and the money given to the poor. 

Jesus says - leave her alone. You will always have the poor and you can always give to them, but you won't always have me. 'She anointed my body before burial' v8

That's what struck me....he's talking about his death, and yet he's not moody or emotional. In fact, Jesus continued to be a leader to the apostles even as he was going to the cross. 

I think about the way that, when there's a bit of extra pressure or things don't go the way I want them to, it affects me - it affects the way I interact with people. Seeing what Jesus is like motivates me to change that.

views

It's interesting to look at what countries views of my blog come from. Australia is seventh on the list. First is the USA, and second is Hong Kong. I think Hong Kong might catch up based on the views I've been getting lately. I don't think Hong Kong was even in the top 10 and then recently I just started getting hundreds of views a day from there, and that has continued to date. Coming in third is Singapore and it's similar to Hong Kong....a while ago I started getting hundreds of views a day from Singapore...that's tapered off now though. 

Fourth is Germany, fifth is Canada, sixth is France, seventh is Australia, eighth is the United Kingdom, ninth is Sweden, tenth is Ireland. 

circle

When I feel the build up of pressure, the sense of falling into a hole that is depression, I catastrophize, and life seems like a nightmare with no comfort and joy. But I've learnt a lot in the last couple of years about reframing. 

I've learnt to see and say that what feels like it's breaking me and dragging me down, is the opposite. It's good. The pressure is good. Even on a small scale that is the case. Like when I wake up and I'm already stressed and I hardly even feel coherent and my fear about my unhinged state contributes to my unhinged state, I learnt to tell myself, this is not what it feels like. I've learnt to change my mind like that, so that it breaks the cycle of fear. I see the turmoil in my mind as a kind of renovation. 

compulsion

I did a course about stress at uni, and when we did our tutorial presentation, we could do it on anything as long as we talked about stress. This was a really cool and interesting course. Along with our presentation, we had to create a poster....I'm not sure why we did that, but the artist in me really relished that task. 

I did my presentation about the stress of being in a cult. When I was presenting, I felt like it wasn't going that well because there was no response. The audience just seemed dead. Complete silence and no reactions. But then, when I asked if there were any questions, I realized that it wasn't that people weren't interested in what I was saying. It was the opposite. There were so many questions and the questions continued after the class, which is something I've never experienced before or since. 

It goes to show that when you have a unique take on a common topic, it's worth sharing it. 

voice

I've come across 2 TV shows lately that use AI to do a voice-over of a historical person reading their actual diary. I'm not a fan of this. I think it sounds unnatural and flat. 

ends

Since I learnt that, in stopping drinking I was beginning a new life, I've believed in that new life. I learnt the nature of it. My old life was characterized by withdrawal and rumination. My new life was one of engagement and activity. 

All the challenges I've been through and I'm still going through, have driven me into my new life. I know that's the solution. To put it in other terms, it's about actually doing my daily goals rather than just wanting to do them. It took pain to get me to do that because you can't do it when you're comfortable. 

The depression, struggle, anxiety, despair, weakness doesn't mean what it used to mean. It used to mean loss and futility and rejection. It used to be negative. Now, it's proof to me that I'm making progress. It's like friction or like a work of renovation. It doesn't feel good but it's building me. It's not breaking me down. 

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It's not a constant going out into the storm like it was.

give

I may be struggling but I'm making permanent progress that will never be taken away. 

It's been more than 2 years since I had a drink. There have been moments when I have been stressed and there was alcohol right there in front of me. I could have had a drink. But I know the stakes. I know what would inevitably happen if I cross that line. 

I fully believe that if I have a drink I am throwing my life away. 

drama

The real-life fallout from 'Baby Reindeer' is more interesting than the show. 

the dialectics of business success

There are no get-rich-quick schemes. There is no formula or secret that someone can impart to you to make money, but in a way there is. You can get ideas from what people share and then implement them yourself in your own way. 

possession

I think one of the greatest gifts that education can give you is knowing what's out there. It's not about accumulating knowledge, it's about knowing how to keep growing your knowledge - knowing what books you want to read and what questions you want to ask.