why doing dumb stuff is important

"If you have a garden and a library, you have everything you need." Cicero

This Saturday I went to class with 3 hours of sleep. Do I regret it? Absolutely not. I would go so far as to argue that I am proud I did it.

As a person in my early twenties, I feel some pressure to perform as a functional part of society, even though I am not truly there yet. There are both arguments "use your twenties to get ahead" and "the twenties are a time to do dumb stuff". I do not fully agree with either, but it seems like I gravitate towards using my twenties to get ahead. Or at least I like guilt-tripping myself towards it. Who doesn't love to compare oneself to others in this day and age? This comparative guilt-tripping is of no help withs my pre-existing fear of failure either.

Rainn Wilson talks about the twenties being a workshop stage in a podcast episode. The way he says it made me come down to earth and realise that "I might not know precisely what I want out of life yet and that is okay." In the same clip, Rainn Wilson also says that the whole point in your twenties is to make as many mistakes as possible to then learn. This brings me to my next point.

It is a necessity to make mistakes to grow. We both know this. This being said I do not find myself looking for the failure that could help me. I try to avoid failure at all costs. Tim Ferris has a good technique in situations where we are confronted with a complex case of fear of failure. Just ask yourself: "What's the worst that can happen?"

When we answer this question genuinely we might find ourselves having a completely novel perspective on the situation. Since our brains are very much overreacting to any thought of failure we might not realise the opportunity that lay in front of us. This brain hack can help us soothe the intensity of the problem. It can help us turn down the emotional side of decision-making and ramp back up the practical side.

I would like to conclude by saying that treating life more like an experiment than a precise procedure is the way to go. The point of an experiment is to explore the possibilities in a given situation, the execution of the experiment matters little since it can be done over. There is less pressure when calling life an experiment. I believe this to be (at least a temporary) way to dismantle self-created pressure to perform.

This Week's Suggestions:

🎶 "Danielle (smile on my face)" by Fred again..

Fred again.. got on my radar with his COVID-themed production "Marea (We've Lost Dancing)". After that, he has come out with banger after banger. Danielle is his most recent song which serves as a build-up for his upcoming album in the following months. The reason I appreciate his music is that he has such a specific style and he is a true showman, his Boiler Room set proves that.

Have a wonderful day!