An increasing number of highly miseducated morons are slowly taking over the world.
They’ve read all the books. Every single one. They’ve listened to all the podcasts. On 3x speed. And they post about the importance of well-being on LinkedIn.
They are…the pseudo-enlightened.
Confusing information for knowledge, and motion for action.
They have lots to say. But do very little.
In just a few minutes of conversation, they will inform you of their rigorous ice bath regimen, why they don’t eat breakfast, and why everyone urgently needs to learn to use AI or face omnicide at the hands of Sam Altman, High Priest of the AI-pocalypse.
If you ask them to explain the science behind cold exposure, they will freeze.
Why they don’t eat breakfast? They will breakdown.
And dare to disagree with a single thing they say, and they will get TR*GGERED.
A military defence mechanism against thinking critically about any of the viewpoints they have now mistaken for their personality.
What could be the start of a fascinating, well-intentioned and mind-expanding debate is instead received as a vicious attack on their personal character.
If your opinions are predictable, you are (probably) in the grip of ideology.
There is (obviously) enormous value in learning from “experts” and peers online.
But all things in moderation, including moderation.
Excessive reading & listening is no better than excessive masturbation or teeth-grinding.
It might feel good in the moment, but every time you read a book, you are losing part of yourself to the author.
In the same way a small boy may lose touch with his intrinsic affinity for guitaring, because his parents have told him it’s a waste of time and Andrew Tate says music is for losers who can’t afford a Spotify subscription…
So does the impressionable adult, who gives up on their interest in learning French because Bill Gates says “focus!”, or feels pressured to quit their stable 9-5 because their m8 from school is making double as a well-being coach on LinkedIn, telling adults to chill out & eat carrots.
Like syphilis, books and podcasts are parasites that creep deep inside your mind till you can no longer tell what’s your own thinking vs Sahil Bloom’s. Leaving not a symptom’s trace.
Do you need an elaborate Notion productivity system? Or is that Ali Abdaal banging on your skull.
Do you want to work remotely from a beach in a developing country away from all your friends? Or is that some tw*t on Instagram who’s invaded your mind.
(Almost) all information is propaganda.
And so all learning must be balanced by unlearning.
The parroting repetition of everything we read or watch or hear online is the best way to completely forget who you are and what you actually care about.
It is ironic that after 10 years of “personal development”, I am basically just a more confident version of who I was back at 16.
A weird nerd who doesn’t take life too seriously and loves fashion and athletics and physics and philosophy and wants to do something good in the world.
But how deeply that was buried by all the nonsense…
The “wake up at 5am”
The “focus on just one boring thing otherwise you’ll never be successful”
The “only eat between 1pm and 1:05pm for optimal cell autophagy”
The “wear the same thing every day to reduce decision fatigue in the mornings”
The “go out drinking every night to enjoy your 20s”
The “do whatever the f*ck anyone who looks even slightly more successful than you says so you never have to think for yourself, ever again, period”.
And before you know it, you’ve grinded all your teeth away, and your brain cells are blended down to a Tim-Ferriss-flavoured lava puddle, incapable of thought.
Stop copying. Start vandalising.
You do not need to copy anyone.
You are capable of thinking for yourself.
The gurus and experts do occasionally have useful things to say.
But they’re no smarter than you. They just happen to be on podcast, or a little older, or a little richer.
If you’re totally clueless, take their advice as a starting point, sure.
But do not copy what they do.
Strip it down. Cut off the boring bits. Chainsaw the dumb bits. They are the canvas, but you are responsible for your painting.
An extremely interesting fact
How do hot air balloons change direction?
Up and down is easy.
Up = Increase the lil’ flame > more heat > air particles bounce around more and spread out > decreases density, because more spread out (relative to the air outside) > and the hot air balloon starts floating (same reason a balloon floats on water)
Down = Decrease the lil’ flame > less heat > air particles relax and take up less space > increases density (relative to the air outside) > and the hot air balloon starts sinking towards the Earth
But what about left and right and all the diagonals and stuff?
Here it gets quite clever.
At different heights in the air, the winds move in different directions.
So if you wanna go North, you need to find a gust of wind also going North. E.g. at 500m above ground. So you’ll change flame to reach that height, and then the wind will carry you North.
If you then need to go North East, you’ll ned to find wind going in that direction, perhaps that’s at 750m. So heat up till you get to 750m, and now you’re going North East!
Work With Me!
I am always looking for interesting, brilliant people who want to (actually) change the world. So just get in touch. I don’t care about your background, just you as a human being, but a CV or LinkedIn + a bit of context helps :)
Andrew ✌️