27 Lessons In 27 Years - Part 2 of 3

10 - 18

I feel like I am writing to myself. That’s okay, I am enjoying piecing together my thoughts. I can confidently say it’s the most enjoyable hobby I have picked up in the last couple of years.

If you’ve ever thought about writing, you should just give it a shot.

Writing is a form of therapy; sometimes I wonder how all those who do not write, compose, or paint can manage to escape the madness, the melancholia, the panic fear which is inherent in the human situation ~ Graham Greene

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10. The food you eat impacts your mind just as much as your body

The One Thing that every person does every day, without fail, is consume calories. Our bodies are like cars; if we put the wrong fuel into our cars, the machine will not run at an optimal level - it breaks down frequently, requires more repairs, and eventually becomes irreparable.

Many of the foods we consume in the Western hemisphere are scientifically proven to cause dementia, Alzheimer’s and depression. The foods culpable are known as ultra-processed foods (UPF). You should have a basic-level understanding of what UPFs are.

If you can spare 4-minutes in your day to learn how you can reduce the risk of heart attacks and depression, please read this article:

Short Intro to Ultra-Processed Foods

11. Happiness is a temporary emotion, do not chase it

The present moment is filled with joy and happiness. If you are attentive, you will see it ~ Thich Nhat Hanh

One key concept of Buddhist philosophy that I constantly fall back on is impermanence. Nothing in our lives will remain the same forever, and any emotion we feel is temporary.

Everyone chases the emotion of happiness. We shouldn’t.

Happiness is an experience. It isn’t something that we can permanently feel. The more we attempt to chase a feeling of happiness, the faster it will pass. When something doesn’t materialize naturally, it is always bound to pass by rapidly.

I am not asking you to be depressed. When we are happy, we should allow ourselves to experience it fully, but be aware that it will pass. In the same way, when we are sad, we should feel sad because that too will pass.

The only constancy in life is change.

12. 20% of your experiences are responsible for 80% of your happiness

This follows from the point above. If you reflect on the last 12 months of my life, there are 3-4 key events that you can identify and confidently say you were genuinely happy.

From a personal perspective, the emotion of happiness is most present when I travel and explore new countries. Many people seek happiness through external things. But we should be careful about this, Marcus Aurelius once said:

People seek retreats for themselves in the countryside by the seashore, in the hills, and you too have made it your habit to long for that above all else. But this is altogether unphilosophical, when it is possible for you to retreat into yourself whenever you please; for nowhere can one retreat into greater peace or freedom from care than within one’s own soul

Instead of looking outwards, we should look inwards for contentment.

13. Everyone is different, do not try and change someone

Each person is carving their own path. Their perspectives and hobbies are influenced by events that shaped their life.

You should not try and change somebody because we want them to live in alignment with our ideal for them. Firstly, it’s boring to be with someone who thinks exactly as we do. Secondly, we end up being disappointed when someone doesn’t live up to our expectations of them.

If we accept someone as they are, we can always expect that they can change. People do change. The only constancy in life is change.

14. Time is the most valuable asset, do not waste it doing things you do not enjoy

One day, you will wake up and there won’t be any more time to do the things you’ve always wanted. Do it now ~ Paulo Coelho

In all aspects of life, you should reflect on the following statement.

You should be earning or learning. Both is best, either is good - if you are doing neither, what are you actually doing?

15. If you do not feel challenged, you are stagnating

Every person needs to be challenged. Typically, we make decisions that do not cause immediate suffering.

In the short-term, we are okay. In the long-term our lives are more difficult because we did not make the crucial decisions when we should have. Nobody wants to be challenged, because it implies difficulty, tension, and battle. We would rather put off the difficult decisions for the future. It’s cliché, but You Only Live Once. We should push ourselves to become the best version of ourselves.

When we do the things that scare us, growth is automatic and the insights we gain are invaluable.

Option A: Unchallenged → Unmotivated → Stagnation
Option B: Challenged → Motivated → Growth

16. Whatever you do, try your best to give it your complete focus because there is always something new to learn

Shoshin (Japanese: 初心) is a concept from Zen Buddhism meaning beginner's mind.

It refers to having an attitude of openness, eagerness, and lack of preconceptions when studying, even at an advanced level, just as a beginner would. Always give what you are doing your full focus and attention because there is an opportunity to learn from repeating the task.

17. Spend more time in the real world and as little as possible in the virtual world

How you begin your day sets the precedent for the trajectory of the rest of your day.

Most people wake up, turn off their alarm, scroll through their social media, and feel terrible about themselves. Our minds are most vulnerable in the morning. It is very sad to witness people dedicating the first moments they are awake to frantically checking what the external world got up to in the night.

Social media is the most destructive things for our mental health. That’s why I deleted all social media.

For the last few weeks, I have been doing my best to avoid my phone for the first 120-minutes of my day. Here are the benefits I noticed:

• I take the time in the morning to do the things that I really want to do.

• I am more focused throughout my day.

• I pick up my phone on fewer occasions throughout the rest of the day.

• I am generally more content when I spend less time on my phone and instead focus on the device in my head.

Mobile phones were designed to connect the world. Now, the mobile phone has made humans lose connection with themselves.

18. Your thoughts become your destiny

The way you think impacts what you say, how you act, and your habits.

The combination of our thoughts, words, and actions determine the person we become. If you speak negatively about yourself and say things like ´I do not have the experience to do this´ your mind believes it.

I like to think of this like a hammer and nail. When you speak negatively about yourself, you are hammering the nail in a little deeper each time. At a certain point, the nail is so deep into the wood that you cannot pull it out anymore.

"Watch your thoughts, they become words;
Watch your words, they become actions;
Watch your actions, they become habits;
Watch your habits, they become character;
Watch your character, for it becomes your destiny."

Let me know if any of these resonate with you in the comments!