Cute babies, Lucifer & conscious choice

The newsletter is back. Like actually back. And I'm finally a normal human being again.

Hello beautiful readers 👋

It’s been a while! Here’s a quick update on where I’ve been & the future of the newsletter…followed by your latest injection of Steroids For Your Brain 🧠

Where I’ve been?

In 2021, I began experiencing symptoms of complex PTSD and OCD. Over the next year, things got insufferably difficult to the point where I was ambulanced to a mental health crisis centre.

But finally, with a mix of medication, psychodynamic therapy & an enormously talented executive coach, I’m back on my feet! 

And I have been for ~1 year now (minus 6ish weeks where I came off my medication…) but felt like I needed at least that long before I could start consistently writing again.  

After all, who wants to hear from someone who doesn’t even have their own life together?! 

And if you’re having a hard time with your own mental health, please reach out - I’d love to share what helped me, maybe it’ll help you, too :)

What’s next? 

1/ Steroids For Your Brain is back. Every Thursday. I have a bubbling backlog of new articles I’m excited to share with you! And a sexy new logo:

2/ The Why Are You Working So Much? series will be coming out as a book. Too intertwining to write up as separate articles. I’ll share a free digital first draft with all subscribers later this year! Thank you for your patience. And you can read the first few pages here if you’re interested. 

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3/ For everyone who is/was interested in step-by-step coaching to escape their 9-5 and earn £100+/hour as a high-skilled freelancer, I’m creating a weekly group coaching cohort for you.

Over the next 6 months, we’ll get you to a place where you only have to work 1 day per week! (Obviously, like me, you can choose to work more - but hopefully on things you enjoy vs are forced into…)  

To apply, please reply to this email with why you’re interested + all the obstacles you think will get in your way over the next 6 months.

Please note: there will be a small fee for the coaching that will be donated directly to Givewell’s Top Charities Fund. The fee is just a commitment tool to make sure you’re serious, given there are only 6 spaces and it’s a 6-month commitment! (I would love to help more people but just don’t have capacity.)

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4/ I’m hiring for three different positions: Social Media Director, Chief Operating/Technology Officer (no prior experience needed), and Principal Researcher.

Would love to potentially work with you if you’re interested :)   

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And finally, I’m back working on interesting ideas I believe could really change the world. I’m also studying a free online “degree” in Physics using MIT’s OpenCourseWare. And I just got back from Florence, Italy, where I spent my time getting fat & drawing flowers: 

Da Vinci on the left. (Obviously)

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Something to make you think 🤔

Are you the cause of all your problems? 

While I was going insane - trapped in a Luciferous wormhole of horrific thoughts and extreme physical pain - I struggled massively to entertain normal conversations with normal people. 

Before long they would start complaining about their man boobs or finding a flat or the high-paid but boring job they were staying in, of their own volition. 

Obviously everyone likes a self-indulgent moan from time to time, and I’m not here to tell you to “stop making excuses” etc.

Just a reminder that most of these things are choices. 

The choice to eat too much, and move too little. The choice to live in a feast of a city like London, with a sprawling population and fast-turning rental market. Or the choice to take a less interesting/creative job to earn more money. 

There is something liberating about consciously acknowledging your choice. 

Every choice you make has its consequences. If you don’t like the consequences, make a better choice. And if there are no better choices, then make your peace. 

There are plenty of things in my life that could be “better”. Knee injuries, torn rotator cuff, random auto-immune disease. But I’ve chosen not to care, I can’t be bothered to see a physio or radically change my diet, there are more important things I’m focussing on right now.

I might complain about struggling to play basketball now and then, but it never turns into “suffering” or powerlessness, because at the end of the day it’s all (mostly) my choice.

So:

Are you the cause of all your problems? Do you need to make a different choice? Or just make peace?

Hit reply with your answer! 👇 I read & reply to every single one 😄

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Extremely Interest Fact 🤓

Ever seen something really f*cking cute?! Like this: 

Or this: 

Or even this: 

And you’ve just wanted to squish it? Like almost quite aggressively squish it between your hands? To the point where you’re worried you might even hurt it? 

Weird eh? So much cute, yet so much violence…

Scientists call this cute aggression. And the leading theory is that to prevent emotional overload from all the overwhelmingly loving positive cuteness, we release/counter-balance some of that overwhelm with (mostly) harmless physical violence. Instead of melting in awwwwww

Ask Me Anything 👋

What are your struggles/goals? What’s holding you back? Any questions - let me know and I’ll answer personally.

Andrew ✌️