Life Isn't Fair

Daily Quote

"I know the world isn't fair, but why isn't it ever unfair in my favor?"
-Bill Watterson-

"The world is not fair, and often, fools, cowards, liars and the selfish hide in high places."
-Bryant McGill-

Lesson of the Day

Life isn't fair. That's a fact. Life operates on a set of rules, completely independent of our sense of justice or fairness. You can find someone that you love with all of your heart, truly, and never be able to  be more than a friend to them. You can give your all and hold nothing back, and still fail due to conditions outside your control. You can have the most potential of any human being, and die shortly after birth. Life isn't fair, life doesn't bend to our whims and desires. There is no life that you're supposed to live. There is nothing that you're supposed to do, nothing that you're supposed to have or achieve. Whatever comes, is what comes. Just because you're smart doesn't mean you'll ever get a chance to do more than labor. Just because you want something, doesn't mean you can ever have it. Just because you hurt, doesn't mean the wound will ever fade. Life isn't fair. Drop the expectations, because they aren't real. Live in real life, not in some illusion. Yeah, it might be starker, or more depressing, but at least it's real.

Questions to Ponder

Do you live in the real world, or in an illusion? Do you expect things from life?  Do you life your life to what you want it to be? Or according to what others want it to be? Are you seeing clearly?

Gratitude

I'm thankful today for clarity, for being able to see things for what they are. I'm thankful for being me, in all of my dark and all of my light. Thank you all for reading, I hope you all have a great day.

The Fear of Pain

Daily Quote

"Recovery is something that you have to work on every single day, and it's something that doesn't get a day off."

-Demi Lovato-

Lesson of the Day

Fear is everywhere these days, and indeed it's an intrinsic part of the human experience. One of the worst manifestations is hate, and the fighting that comes from it. Particularly, I'm talking about the avoidance of dealing with pain. I see these people who stay connected to others literally every waking hour of their lives, who are always with others physically, always busy, who avoid silence and solitude like the plague. In silence and solitude, we can hear our inner thoughts, process our lives and what we're feeling, to think without distraction. You see, I don't think, in this case, that people are fearing doing things alone, rather I think that they don't want to face themselves, don't want to face their lives, don't want to hurt. I've found that, in myself, I'm more apt to be overly busy when I'm hurting than when I'm doing great. When I'm hurting, I used to avoid dealing with it by staying overly busy, and I see the exact same behavior patterns in people of all ages out in the world. We avoid pain, and that's it. That's all it is, we fear pain, and so avoid it. From experience, the best path I've found is to use the silence and solitude to feel that hurt, to process it and explore it, to deal with it. I get it, it sucks when you hurt, you don't want to feel like crap. When you don't end up where you wanted to be in life, when you lose the things you love, when you fail, it hurts, I get it. Pain sucks. Do you know what's worse? Bringing that pain into everything you do, carrying it for years and years, inflicting it's negative effects on those close to you, just because you don't want to deal with it. There is no substitute to dealing with your pain, not a single one. You just pawn it off on others in a new form. Don't live in fear, deal with your issues, deal with your pain, choose to live a better life in reality than one avoiding it.

Questions to Ponder

What pains are you bringing with you? Are there things you're avoiding? If so, why? Are you truly happy, or are you so out of touch with yourself that you don't even know how you really feel? Do you know yourself?

Gratitude

Today I'm thankful for having time to be in solitude and silence. I spent the entire morning just thinking, and thus the post was born. I'm so thankful for you all, thank you all for reading! I hope you all take something from this, and that you all have a great day!

Envy

Daily Quote

"Never underestimate the power of jealousy and the power of envy to destroy. Never underestimate that."

-Oliver Stone-

Lesson of the Day

One of the worst feelings to have is envy. It's more than just unpleasant, it poisons what you do have while you pine for what you don't. The thing about envy is that it shifts your focus away from what you do have, to all the things you don't have. It makes you feel like what you have isn't good enough, makes you feel like what you have isn't worth having. One situation I often see is one in which a person sees that others have what he or she wants, whether that be money, a person's time and energy, or even being healthy. This person tends to see themselves as inferior, when they aren't. They feel like what they have isn't valuable, when, in reality, what they have is very valuable. Once you sit and think for awhile, you come to the realization that it all comes down to focus and clarity. Let's start with the latter, it's easier. Clarity is seeing clearly, so what aren't they seeing? Well, envy is a common human emotion, which means a lot of people do it. Which means that, all those people who have what you want, want what someone else has. So, in reality, there are people who are envious of what you have, who feel that what you have is more valuable than what they have. The second part of the clarity portion is that, while each party may feel that what the other person has is better, both are skewed perspectives. Settle it to say that everything you have is valuable, is worth quite a lot, whether it be friends, money, health, talents, skills, etc. What you have is valuable, believe that. Now for the former: focus. We all know what it is to focus. Take a look at an example here. There are two neighbors, and two gardens. The first neighbor's garden is beautiful, well-kept, and flourishing. The second neighbor's garden is overgrown, ugly, and headed to desolation. The first neighbor spends his time tending his garden, while the second only watches the other garden grow and flourish. The moral is to tend what you have, to focus on what you have, and what it can be. That's really the way to fight envy. The more you focus on what you have, and it's potential, the better your garden will become. Pining away at things you don't have does nothing, so take care of your life, tend your garden, see clearly, and focus.

Questions to Ponder

What do you envy? Do you fight your envy, or are you giving in to it? Do you give your own life the attention it needs to flourish and grow? What can you do better? How can you make things better?

Gratitude

I'm thankful today for what I have, all of it. I'm thankful for the opportunity to make my life great, to make things better. I'm thankful for all of you, thank you for reading, and I really hope each of you have a great day!

Know Before You say

Daily Quote

"Knowledge is power. Information is liberating. Education is the premise of progress, in every society, in every family."

-Kofi Annan-

Lesson of the Day

Many people talk about things of which they have no knowledge. Our society has an issue with people thinking that everyone has a right to speak their mind and provide their opinion. That's not the case. The biggest example I have experienced is people judging the value of something without even knowing whatever it is. You can't say that someone is bad and deserves punishment, if all you have to go on is one person's word. You don't know enough. Many times I've been called , because I refuse to take a stance on the Edward Snowden case until I've gone through as much information as I can. I will not condemn anyone or anything until I know enough. I have been called a disloyal friend, because I do not accept a single person's word as evidence for the quality of a human being or their actions. People lie, people twist truth, people make mistake, the longer I know someone, the more weight I give their word should they keep it, but even then I need more than someone's word. I have been called heartless, for not blindly believing what people say. I'm not sorry if I come off heartless, cold, distant, indecisive, whatever. I've had enough people lie to me to know a word isn't proof. I've made enough misjudgements on value and worth due to a lack of information and thought to know that a single piece of information more could completely change the outcome. I've had enough people misjudge things and others around them due to a lack of information and thought to know others aren't perfectly reliable to say the least. I've had enough people manipulate my emotions with stories to know that, while people lie, emotions shouldn't rule my head. Facts, information, proof, logic, those are the things that should govern decisions. Emotions have their place, but so too does logic, and in today's society emotion is too oft used in lieu of logic and reason. Call me cold, call me heartless, call me whatever you want for not blindly believing you, but I will listen to reason and logic and evidence, should you decide to bring such upon my mind.

Questions to Ponder

How often do you use emotion where logic and reason should be used? How often do people try to sway your opinion solely with emotion and words, rather than by logic and evidence? Why do so many people think emotionally rather than logically?

Gratitude

I'm thankful for the ability to think logically and for the strength to be myself, even when others disapprove. I'm thankful for the tools I have that allow me to make better decisions and to lead a better life than I did before. Thank you all for reading, I hope you all gain something, and that you all have a great day!

The Burden of Proof

Daily Quote

"What can be asserted without proof can be dismissed without proof."

-Christopher Hitchens-

Lesson of the Day

People today have an idea that the burden of proof lies upon others to disprove, rather than on the self to prove. That's a blatant misconception, one of laziness and hubris. Some people think that their ideas and actions should be taken as true without proof, unless someone can disproves them. That's complete crap. I am responsible for proving that my ideas, plans, views, actions are good ones, that they are relevant and useful. If I want to pursue a plan to solve a problem, it is my job to prove the logic and reason, to illustrate how it solves the problem. If I want to pursue a dream, and I need help, it's my job to prove that it's a worthwhile one that's worthy of help. If I am for or against something, it's up to me to prove why or why not, to show my reasons. If someone leverages a complaint or argument against another, they need to have valid reasons why they do. At the same time, if someone challenges an idea, view, action, that you have or do, and they provide valid reasons, then it's on you to defend your position, or else the other person is right by default. If you don't feel like defending what you think and do, that's fine, but stop expecting people to listen to you. Either prove it, or be okay with people not believing you and not listening to you. I've said it before, proof is everything, but it must be said that no one is exempt from the burden of proof.

Questions to Ponder

What times have you shrugged the burden of proof? Did you still expect people to listen and believe you? What times have others done the same? Why would it ever be okay to not provide evidence?

Gratitude

I'm thankful for all of the critical thinkers out there who rely on logic and reason, who contemplate life and the world. I'm thankful for all of the chances I have to develop myself and learn and grow. I'm thankful for my mindset. Thank you all for reading, and I hope you all have a great day!

Do What You Love

Daily Quote

"Do what you love. Know your own bone; gnaw at it, bury it, unearth it, and gnaw it still."

-Henry David Thoreau-

Lesson of the Day

Find what you love to do, and do it. Find what interests you, what draws the attention of your mind and heart, and pursue that. And, never let it go. I love math and writing, as I have mentioned before. If I were told one day, that I would never be able to work in either, that I had to find a career outside of those, I honestly would still write and do math in my spare time. When you go to invest your time, obviously you do what you have to do first. It comes down to priorities, whatever you want most, do that, and accept the costs. Seriously, it's that simple. If you want to work a job that you love, and you want that more than a family, then it's okay to not make a lot. But if your priority is to raise and support a family, you have to pick a job that pays enough to do so. In this case, you love having a family more than you love having a job you like. That's all it comes down to. It's not bad to not have a family, it's not bad to have one, it's not bad to not make a lot, and it's not bad to make a great deal. It just matters what you love more, and being realistic about the consequences. I love math, science, and writing, and I'm willing to sacrifice for those, because I would be miserable outside of those fields, because I am miserable outside those. Know that even if I can't pursue those as careers, I will still pursue them as passions. Also know, whatever you decide, once you make your choice, it can be difficult to change paths, so decide wisely. Regardless, do what you love, even if it's just as a hobby, be true to who you are, and get out there and make what you want a reality.

Questions to Ponder

Do you love what you do? Do you love your life? Are you proud of what you do and who you are? What could you do to improve your life? What could your life become?

Gratitude

Today I'm thankful that I can work in the fields I love, and that I am pursuing those fields to higher degrees. Thank all of you for reading, and for your continued support, have an amazing day!

What Makes You Special?

Daily Quote

"What you have, what you are - your looks, your personality, your way of thinking - is unique. No one in the world is like you. So capitalize on it."

-Jack Lord-

Lesson of the Day

I see so many people who consider themselves more qualified for something because of skills, or because of the right clothes, right car, right age, whatever. Let me shed some light on what really makes a person more or less qualified. Skills can be learned and improved, and should only be a factor when time is an issue. Effort can be given by anyone. Things can be purchased. Age has no bearing on knowledge, wisdom, skill, or mentality, it has no meaning of it's own. What really makes you stand out isn't any of that, it's the things you can't just learn to do, it's your mentality, it's your story, it's who you are. Look at the greats of this world, and rarely will you see that no one else had the skills, you will see that who they were made all the difference. Business has had the same concepts since the beginning, with different shells. Anyone can go and learn the concepts of business, it's really not that hard. So what separates the best from the rest? The best examples are self-made men. A great one is Abraham Lincoln. He didn't have a lot given to him, but he wanted to be more than he was born into. He didn't have access to formal education, so what did he do? He read as much as he could, he taught himself law. Sam Walton began Walmart, on the exact same principles of business that have been around for centuries. Walt Disney came from nothing, and forged an empire of cartoons that have affected millions of people. Bill Gates founded Microsoft, revolutionized modern society, and continuously donates to causes. All of these people, all of them and many more have a few things in common. They never gave up on what they wanted to do, they never quit trying even when they failed, time and again. They didn't let circumstance dictate what they could do and what they couldn't, rather they utilized every single resource they could and were relentless in their pursuit of their goals. Most importantly, these people were themselves, and no one else. They each had unique mentalities, personalities, mixtures of skills and talents, views. Each of them was special, was unique, and they used that to do all that they did. Find what makes you special, what sets you apart, and use that, take full advantage of it. You are special, unique, and only by embracing that will you ever reach your full potential.

Questions to Ponder

What can you do that no one else can? What do you bring to the table that others don't? Do you use those things that make you different to benefit your life? What makes you special?

Gratitude

I'm thankful today for my personality, my perspective, my mindset, for all I am that makes me different and unique. I'm thankful for being an individual, for getting the chance to be one. Thank you all for reading, and thank you all for your support and help! Have a fantastic day!