I’ve been in London for the weekend catching up with friends and attending an Imperial College reunion. As I’m on my way home, I can’t help thinking about a quote by Paul Graham:
“Every city whispers something.”
I loved living in London last year. The city is alive. The hustle culture is infectious, it makes me want to work harder and aspire for more. I don’t think I’m the only one that feels that. Many of the people I meet in London feed off that same feeling; they’re building a business, writing a book, starting a podcast. As David Perell says: ‘the whispers of cities are so influential that innovation has historically been clustered in small pockets’. London has been whispering, now I want to move back.
🗓 This Week
Why we should read more fiction.
From speaking with friends, I've noticed trend in how our reading journeys have begun. We start by reading self-help books, my thought process was this:
'If I'm going to spend time reading, I need to learn clear lessons from it. If I want entertainment, I'll watch Netflix.'
My relationship with reading has always been a transaction. In medical school, I read to learn. When I came to read in my free time, it felt strange to read without taking key lessons away from the books. However, I've started to love fiction recently, so I've made a video explaining the benefits of fiction. My hope is to get more people to make the fiction transition. I'll be releasing it tomorrow night.
🔊 Resonators
THE NOSTALGIA THEORY (Video)
Johnny Harris' storytelling is beautiful. This is one of his only videos where he discusses neuroscience—therefore it's my favourite. Nostalgia is a very strange feeling. I get it when I watch my old travel films, and it's so difficult to describe. It reminds us of the deep happiness of that moment, followed by melancholy because we'll never be in that moment again. Great video, highly recommend.
Terry Crews Breaks Down About His Sexual Abuse & Beating Up His Dad (Podcast)
Terry Crews is incredibly vulnerable in this podcast. He opens up about his marriage, talks about his dysfunctional relationship with his dad and how that’s affected his entire life. People think that to be masculine, we can’t be vulnerable. That outlook is so sad. To form truly great connections with friends and partners, we have to be vulnerable. Crews redefines what masculinity is in this podcast, with vulnerability being a key ingredient. It reminded me of when Tyson Fury talked about suffering from depression. There’s something incredibly inspirational about the toughest people—the people who embody masculinity—opening up.
Why the Best Things in Life Are All Backwards (Article)
The king of blogging needs no introduction, all of Mark Manson's articles are gems. Sometimes putting more effort in is counterproductive, especially in psychological endeavours. For example:
- The more we try to feel confident, the more insecurity and anxiety we will create. The more we accept our faults, the more comfortable we will feel in our own skin.
- The more we pursue a deeper meaning or purpose to our lives, the more self-obsessed and shallow we will become. The more we try to add meaning to others’ lives, the more profound impact we will feel.
Quote
"Don’t try to be the best. Be the only." — Terry Crews