Woolgathering # 140: Scrubbing Toilets and the Road to Happiness
Also: Pre-mortems, Magic Math Chalk, and Dan Harmon's basic elements of good storytelling
In the first pages of The Art of Peace, Morihei Ueshiba lays down a lesson that has stuck with me for the decade or so since I first read it:
One does not need buildings, money, power, or status to practice the Art of Peace. Heaven is right where you are standing, and that is the place to train.
The message is as simple as it is powerful. But it’s easy to miss, if you don’t give it much thought. It’s a message not just about happiness, but also about motivation, work, and building a life you can be proud of.
Right Where You’re Standing
Ueshiba is issuing a warning. A warning against the limiting thoughts we hold with us — the constraints we build into our lives that keep us from the growth we desire. When he talks about heaven, it’s of course not the literal heaven.
He’s talking about whatever it is we desire. He’s talking about that place we want to be, or the things we want to obtain, and the person we want to be. But because we’re not there yet, or we don’t have those things, we’re not happy.
And the crazy thing is, half the time, we’re not even quite sure what heaven would be for us. We just know that wherever we are, this isn’t it. Whatever we have, it’s not what we really want. Whoever we are now, it’s not who we want to be. And so we keep ourselves locked out of heaven…
Check out my new website
I recently made some changes to my website—like how it’s built and where it’s hosted. It took some work (some of which is still underway), but I think I got it mostly where I’d like it to be.
The new feature YOU might be interested in: I’ve pulled in many of my articles into a blog. You used to have to go to Medium to find them, but no longer.
Meals for Your Mind
Book Recommendation:
The Untethered Soul by Michael A. Singer
There are numerous gems in this book, but they center around a very important point: there is a you separate from all of the thoughts, emotions and desires you experience. It is worth knowing, and knowing it is the way to a much more enjoyable life. There are some good tips in here about just how to separate all of the crap in your mind from the you that's in there. It's a good read.
Conducting a Project “Pre-Mortem”
Chris Bailey has a novel idea for project planning. Too often, we get so psyched about the project that we don’t think about how it could go wrong. Bailey suggests doing a post-mortem, but in advance:
…imagine that the projects you identified…have failed catastrophically. Ask yourself: what went wrong that led these projects to go so poorly?
While this may seem like a depressing exercise, this step will help you anticipate all that could go wrong—and then strategize ways to avoid such mishaps.
There’s never just a single worst case scenario, and these disastrous situations may come to you over time. Keep a “what went wrong” sticky note on your desk or a running list on your phone for a few days, to capture ideas.
The Chalk So Good, Mathematicians Started Hoarding It
Whatever your work, there are certain tools that have become an essential part of it. For mathematicians, one such tool is chalk. But not just any chalk will do. A specific kind of chalk has been widely regarded by mathematicians as the best chalk. And when word got around that the one company making it was about to shut down, things got crazy.
This short video tells the fairly amusing (but highly interesting) story of what happens when the love for a tool of the trade grows well beyond the norm.
[and for those curious about the status of the chalk these days, you might be able to grab some yourself —but definitely check its authenticity before buying]
Dan Harmon on the 8-Part Formula of Great Storytelling
Storytelling comes naturally to humans, but since we live in an unnatural world, we sometimes need a little help doing what we'd naturally do.
You’ve probably heard or read something about the idea that humans are in some way hard-wired for storytelling and story receiving. We understand the world, its events, and our lives through stories. It’s why things like books, movies, and serial-type podcasts endure. Dan Harmon—the creative mind behind shows like Community, The Sarah Silverman Program, and Rick and Morty—has an 8-part formula for a good story.
A Question to Chew On
D.T. Suzuki—one of the earliest scholars to bring Zen to the West—once said:
Enlightenment is like everyday consciousness but two inches above the ground.
Zooming in a little bit, you can imagine enlightenment as having the answer to a particularly tough problem or situation you’re in. The question to ask yourself is: what does this situation look like from two inches above? How do I adopt that point of view?
A Quote
“There are no contests in the Art of Peace. A true warrior is invincible because he or she contests with nothing. Defeat means to defeat the mind of contention that we harbor within.”
-Morihei Ueshiba