Not Enough, Ambition, Sleep, Chamath

Avthar's Weekly Wisdom #38 (01/17/2021)

Jan 17, 2021

Welcome to edition #38 of Avthar's Weekly Wisdom!

🔥 This newsletter is where I share practical wisdom about self-mastery, startups, health and happiness, all to help you live better. My goal is for you to discover one thing that can change your life, in a big or small way, every week.

Life-changing Links

Here's what I want to share with you this week:

🙏 On Happiness —

The “Not Enough” Tape: The story you tell yourself determines how you see the world. Far too often, the story that plays in our heads is one of “not enough”.

I enjoyed this 3 minute conversation between Oprah Winfrey and Lynne Twist, about understanding the “not enough” script, why it arises, and what you can do to replace this invisible script of scarcity with one of abundance.

Here’s the part I found most impactful:

LYNNE: Rather than waking up in the morning and saying “I didn't get enough sleep!”, and going to bed at night with “I couldn't get enough done” -- which is bookending your day with scarcity --
OPRAH: I think this is interesting for us to think about how many times a day that tape plays of “not enough”, not just in money. How many times does that “not enough” show up?
LYNNE: But what if we woke up in the morning and are so grateful for the sweet territory of silence and sleep? What if we go to bed at night...rather than looking at what didn't get done, that's going to dribble over into tomorrow -- which is where we mostly end up each day -- look at what I accomplished today, what I can celebrate today?

📚 P.S. If you enjoyed the clip, I recommend listening to their full conversation on Oprah’s SuperSoul Sunday podcast.

🏆 On Self-Mastery —

Ambition: All my life I’ve thought ambition to be a positive thing. But like many young, clever and ambitious people, I’ve experienced the darkside of ambition, which is the internal struggle of “trying to be someone in the world”. I could never quite put into words the tension that comes with being ambitious, until I came across this excerpt from “What Are You Doing With Your Life?” by the philosopher and writer, Jiddu Krishnamurti:

“If you will look at your own heart and see when you are ambitious, when you are struggling to be somebody, spiritually or in the world, you find that there is the worm of fear inside it.
The ambitious man is the most frightened man because he is afraid to be what he is, because he says, “If I am what I am, I shall be nobody. Therefore, I must be somebody, I must become the engineer, the engine driver, the magistrate, the judge, the minister.
Now, if I am interested as a boy in being an engineer because I love it, because I want to build beautiful houses, because I want to have the best irrigation in the world, because I want to build the best roads, it means I love the thing; therefore, that is not ambition. In that, there is no fear.
...ambition and interest are two different things, are they not? I am interested in painting, I love it, I do not want to compete with the best painter or the most famous painter, I just love painting.
Then, if you find it and if it is a true thing, then you will love it right through life. In that, there will be no ambition, no competition, no struggle, no fighting each other for position, for prestige; and perhaps then you will be able to create a new world.”

This excerpt reminded me of how I felt as a young man in high school and at Princeton University, trying to prove myself academically and intellectually, and how I was as a young first time founder, trying to launch a startup and prove the world that I was like the other “successful” entrepreneurs who I admired growing up. It also fits into my theme of ‘effortlessness’, as when we shed ambition, we stop trying to “be somebody” and instead relax into who we fully are.

📚 If you'd like to learn more about this idea and Krishnamurti’s other writings but can’t afford the book, check out this free transcript and video of a talk by him on “Ideals and Ambition” from 1949. You can also discover more interesting books in my 2021 essential reading list.

💪 On Health —

Master Your Sleep & Be More Alert When Awake: Sleep is the foundation of the pyramid of good health. Level up your sleep with this podcast by Dr Andrew Huberman (previously featured in AWW Edition 31 - The Neuroscience of Optimal Performance).

I viewed the episode through the lens of ‘rhythms and cycles’ and ‘the neurobiology of living well’, two of my themes for 2021. I found Huberman’s discussion about circadian rhythm, what sets your body clock (light, exercise, food) and the effects of different supplements (like melatonin and magnesium threonate) really useful. The podcast is both scientifically rigorous and practically applicable.

Here’s the episode outline if you’re curious about what exactly is covered:

And here’s the episode description in Dr Huberman’s own words:

Today's episode provides a host of information on what makes us sleepy, sleep soundly, and feel awake and alert. It covers a broad range of tools for anyone wishing to improve their sleep and wakeful state. The science and logic for each tool is described.

🚀 On Startups —

An Interview with Chamath Palihapitiya: I remember watching this interview in December 2017, while working on a computer science research project, saying to myself “How haven’t I heard of this guy!?”.

Chamath has since become a hero of mine: I look up to him for being a ‘man in the arena’: someone not afraid to take risks, make mistakes and own both his successes and failures. I also admire his courage and self-awareness to talk about the struggles of his life, both from his upbringing and now in his professional life. It’s a reminder to us all that all the money in the world won’t automatically give you a peaceful internal state. Many of his struggles, both external and internal, remind me of my own life and, as a result, I’ve learned a lot from his interviews.

The interview above, while more than 3 years old, is probably the best introduction to Chamath, his philosophy and origin story, about how his family immigrated from Sri Lanka to Canada. He also details his early career life and what he learned leading growth at Facebook.

If you’re on Twitter, he’s a great follow: @chamath

👨🏽‍💻 What I'm up to these days:

I’m trying to upgrade my morning routine by taking a walk and getting sunlight first thing in the morning (as recommended by Dr Huberman above). But it can be a pain to put on many layers just to walk outside (#NewYorkWinters).

I’m thinking about the direction to take my podcast, newsletter and creative pursuits this year. One idea is to have some solo podcast episodes where I narrate an essay or a book I’ve enjoyed and weave in my commentary throughout the episode. Another idea is a Q+A format episode, where I take questions from subscribers or field questions on a specific topic (e.g How to find a job in 2021, How to start a newsletter / blog, how to start a startup etc). Does that appeal to you?

I’m also thinking about how I can apply leverage (code, capital, labor, content) to my goals for the next period of my life.

🙏 Thank you again for reading and for your support! Wishing you a week of happiness, success and peace!

Avthar

🐦 @avthars

🌐 avthar.com

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