I recently discovered on Spotify the French electronic artist heylucas. His single “life is beautiful” is surprisingly a good summary of what mindfulness brings you: Focusing on your sense puts you right into the present moment and when you are in the present moment what happens is you begin to notice all the simple things…

Today I stumbled upon a copy of Bertrand Russell’s A History of Western Philosophy on display at the local bookstore. I was walking back home from grocery shopping. I was very glad to find it –I have been looking for it. I first read Russell’s meta-analysis on the greatest thinkers that shaped western civilization when…

Today is a good reminder that all bodies eventually fall apart. No amount of healthy lifestyle choices (not smoking, not drinking, not eating trash, plenty of aerobic exercise) will make you an eternal ephebe. We all face decay, and eventual death. Perhaps this very quality of decay makes youth so much more precious. Perhaps life…

The writer James Clear asks his readers in his Thursday 3-2-1 newsletter: Life is always progressing to the next stage. As you enter a new season, habits that previously served you well may need to be refreshed or adjusted. Which one of your current habits have you outgrown and is in need of a change?…

The biographer Robert Caro is famous for dressing up in a blazer and tie for his work at home, even on Sundays. It is interesting how the choice of clothes reflect how you perceive yourself and how you interface with the world. Today I was wearing a cashmere button-up, a stretch cotton trouser, and Oxford…

Carl Jung asks: What did you do as a child that made the hours pass like minutes? Herein lies the key to your earthly pursuits. I suppose for me it was building structures with a wooden geometric puzzle set when I was a toddler. I then discovered Legos at 6 years old, which spurred my…

The entrepreneur and writer James Clear asked his readers in his Thursday’s 3-2-1 newsletter: “Many of our habits and beliefs are learned from those who raised us. Which family story are you unconsciously repeating and reenacting? How can you rewrite the script to liberate yourself and the next generation?” I really like introspective questions like…

Today I tried swimming with a few members of the local swimming club in the afternoon. It was a nice break from the workday. One of the swimmers invited me to join an un-official practice session and offered to drive me to the local swimming pool. It was an Olympic sized pool, open air, in…

Before swimming, I felt depleted. Before swimming, I felt unmotivated. Before swimming, I found myself doomscrolling. Before swimming, I was doing mindless work. Before swimming, I felt unfocused and distracted. Before swimming, I felt aimless. Before swimming, I sensed dread and doom looming over my head. Before swimming, I doubted my future here. Swimming saved…

Our attention is increasingly controlled by predictive algorithms. These algorithms feed us with content that slowly but surely smooth out our little quirks and extravagant ideas. Those odd edges and turns that make us humans with personality. By slowly shaping what we think, they flatten and simplify complex and often paradoxical ideas that otherwise would…