Add to Life, Don’t Just Seek to Enjoy Life
What is the purpose of life?
An idea —
Life is more than just “enjoying life” (leech). Rather, it is about contributing or adding to life (creator/builder).
“The purpose of life is to enjoy it”
One sentiment I don’t agree with is this notion that the purpose of life is to just enjoy yourself. Thus, we fall victim to drugs, alcohol, anesthetics, things which stupefy us, dumb us down, make us unconscious, distracting media, games, etc.
This is the problem:
We get confused — we think the purpose of life is to maximize pleasure and minimize pain (utilitarian thinking, a la John Stuart Mill and Jeremy Bentham).
And this is what modern capitalism has us suckered by:
Buy more stuff to maximize your pleasure, and to minimize your pain and discomfort.
Soft society
Thus, we buy things to add more cushion, softness, and comfort to our lives.
Everything is getting softer. Softer clothes, softer couches, softer car seats and rides, softer beds, softer lifestyles, softer exercises, etc.
Even with video games — games are made as stupid and soft as possible. Just keep tapping at a screen indefinitely, and you will inevitably win.
Do we want soft individuals in society?
Now what is the problem here? By this emphasis on softness in society, it is softening the individual. It prevents a child from being exposed to interesting and hard challenges, which will make the child grow up to be stronger.
Instead, we soften the lives of our children. We don’t expose them to the “real world” of violence and insane shit.
I’m fortunate enough that I was exposed to the difficult and hard things in life as a child. I got the scars to prove it; but the scars (once scabbed over) have made me grow a thicker skin — which has helped me soar higher, and elevated me and my life.
Seek hardness
Hard muscles. Hard lifestyle. Hard challenges. Hard workouts.
Hard is good.
Softness is important too (balance)
Hardness and softness are both essential, but the problem is when the balance and harmony gets fucked up.
This is my idea,
Modern society is 90% soft, and only 10% hard.
I think we need both: an equal balance of hardness and softness.
When in doubt, go hard.
Because we cannot change the fact that modern society has a propensity towards softness, the way to counter-act that is by introducing more hardness to our lives:
- More fasting (this hardens us, and makes us stronger)
- More difficult and hard workouts the gym (1 rep max styled powerlifting for deadlift, squats, dumbbell press).
- More hard challenges in life: not hard for the sake of hard, but hard and interesting challenges you actually want to tackle.
GO HARD.
ERIC