Every Day In Every Way

Amsterdam 2024

Industrial revolutions happen for a reason. They are here to stay; they are here to change the way we do things. We moved from manual labor to industry, from human labor to robots, a long time ago, and created many new opportunities and jobs along the way. This cycle will continue until we rise to the stars above and reach other worlds.

I grew up reading sci-fi, and figuratively speaking, everything happening in the world today has been predicted, researched, and intellectually tested from all sides — the good, the bad, and the ugly. Over and over again, by authors from all parts of the world: Orwell, Clarke, the Strugatsky brothers, Asimov, Zamyatin, Dick, Lem, Liu. They, and many others, foresaw everything we’re dealing with today decades, and in some cases, centuries ago.

In the big scheme of things, you may be surprised at how good you actually have it when you shift your view from the personal to the broader perspective. On your best day, some had it a million times better than you, and on your worst day — which you survived — someone out there may have lost someone or worse.

Maybe practice perspective thinking (or “Perspective Taking”). Let me quote an insightful article I read somewhere online: “Perspective Taking involves making the effort to ‘see’ the world from another person’s point of view. Perspective taking is a little different from empathy. Empathy is a more emotional reaction and often more automatic in nature. Perspective taking, on the other hand, requires a little more conscious effort. It is also a more cognitive process — something you have to ‘try’ to do.”

Once you see things in perspective, there’s almost an immediate “a-ha!” moment. You start thinking: hey, it’s not just me — we ALL experience difficulties. I haven’t been in the best place for the last 5+ years. Hell, I’ve encountered and experienced some batsh*t crazy things, but I don’t need to share them here where things last forever. That wouldn’t help anyone. Maybe after a few drinks at a party with friends, unburden yourself with people you care for — and move on. Bad experiences are just fuel for the motivation to change things up!

I bet your life will immediately feel at least 1% better if you try and force yourself to find a positive angle on everything that’s really bothering you right now. Sometimes that 1% is all you need to get to the other 99% and keep moving forward!

You might try this simple exercise: look at yourself in the mirror and say these magic words that got me through more stitches than I can count — “Every day, in every way, I am getting better!” I first saw this practice in a legendary Yugoslavian movie “Do You Remember Dolly Bell” directed by Emir Kusturica as a kid. I thought it was a joke then, and for years after, but over the last decade, I’ve found some real psychological magic in those words. Magic that allowed me to step out of my head and maybe, for the first time ever, clearly see the entire field of human experience.

C’mon people, things aren’t that bad. We’re all still alive, and AI isn’t going to kill us all (I think!). Enjoy your weekend! Go hiking!